Lutho Sokudela is no longer a councillor, IEC rules

Councillor Lutho Sokudela, 23. (Supplied)

Recently sworn in DA councillor Lutho Sokudela is no longer a councillor.

The Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) on Wednesday confirmed in a letter to city manager Johann Mettler that Sokudela ceased to be a councillor after the Port Elizabeth High Court ruled that DA councillor Mbulelo Manyati was in fact still a councillor.

Manyati turned against his party and abstained from voting during the all- important vote of no confident in speaker Jonathan Lawack on August 27.

Soon after that, the DA terminated Manyati’s membership to the party with Manyati later challenging the move.

#NMBCouncil degenerated into chaos
The Nelson Mandela Bay council meeting has degenerated into chaos on Tuesday morning. Security personnel are attempting to remove Councillor Lutho Sokudela from chambers, who was sworn in as Mbulelo Manyati’s replacement, while the DA are trying to stop security from removing him. Manyati turned up at the council meeting following last Thursday’s court ruling that he was still a member of the DA and thus a councillor. Follow us on Twitter for live updates. https://twitter.com/HeraldPE
Posted by HeraldLIVE - Nelson Mandela Bay on Tuesday, September 25, 2018

The question of whether or not Sokudela was still a councillor caused a stir in the council chamber on Tuesday with councillors almost coming to blows.

The DA on Tuesday maintained that it concluded its disciplinary case against Manyati and that he was no longer a councillor, and that Sokudela was thus a councillor.

Commenting on the IEC's letter on Wednesday, DA provincial leader Nqaba Bhanga said their legal team would handle the matter.

The #IEC has confirmed that following the ruling by the #PortElizabeth High Court last week, Lutho Sokudela of the DA is no longer a councillor and Mbulelo Manyati is reinstated as a councillor. #nelsonmandelabay #NMBCouncil #DA pic.twitter.com/P9ZLqiLfLr
— The Herald NMB (@HeraldNMB) September 26, 2018