The council has backtracked on a decision to delegate powers to Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Gary van Niekerk to find an acting city manager.
Instead, the co-operative governance and traditional affairs MEC or minister will be roped in to find a suitable candidate.
The council will then have a chance to vote in favour or against the candidate.
The decision was made behind closed doors on Wednesday during a special meeting.
Only a handful of DA councillors attended with some of the opposition parties.
According to a report tabled by Van Niekerk, the resolution made in February that he finds an acting city manager was not in line with regulations.
“After consultations and further legal advice solicited, it has become apparent that the initial recommendation to pursue the proposed secondment through Section 27 of the local government regulations on municipal staff was an incorrect legal framework,” he said.
“Further options were explored in terms of the Public Administration Management Act of 2014, Section 6 of the Act, and it also becomes clear after further legal advice that the very section of the said Act was not enacted which meant that it was not operative in terms of the law.”
Electricity and energy executive director Luvuyo Magalela has been acting city manager since the council voted to place Noxolo Nqwazi on precautionary suspension.
Nqwazi is accused, among other things, of failing to take adequate measures to prevent irregular, fruitless and wasteful expenditure when the city reached a settlement agreement with former economic development executive director Anele Qaba.
The council, though, had approved a R3m golden handshake for Qaba earlier in 2023.
Van Niekerk recommended in his report that the new acting city manager be appointed on a three-month basis.
GOOD councillor Lawrence Troon and UDM councillor Luxolo Namette left the meeting earlier.
Van Niekerk used his opening address to criticise how the media reported that the city was in danger of losing nearly R800m.
The Herald reported on Monday that the municipality had only spent 47% of its budget by the end of April and was at risk of forfeiting the money to the National Treasury.
As of Tuesday, he said, the municipality had spent 50% of the budget.
“I also want to disclose to this council that the spending of our capital budget has historically been at low levels when it comes to midterm reports that are presented by the end of December each year, and ever since I have joined this council.
“The capital budget spending for March, April and May of each year have always been low, and only improving during June and July,” he said.
In reply, Troon said Van Niekerk was the worst mayor the city had ever had since apartheid.
“Here is someone who proudly tells us that they have spent 50% of the budget in nine months, it tells you there is no capacity,” Troon said.
ACDP councillor Lance Grootboom said that his explanation only showed his inefficiency.
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