The Nelson Mandela Bay council meeting which lasted only five minutes on Thursday last week cost ratepayers R24,436.
This is based on two invoices — for the use of the Feather Market Centre and for the hiring of the PA system.
The costs do not include the water handed out to councillors. There was no catering during the brief sitting.
The meeting got off to a rocky start when speaker Eugene Johnson adjourned proceedings for five minutes because mayor Babalwa Lobishe and acting city manager Ted Pillay were not present.
The adjournment lasted almost an hour.
When the meeting resumed, Johnson announced that all reports would be deferred to a meeting on July 31 (later rescheduled for this Thursday), saying they were not yet ready for discussion.
However, councillors at the sitting — which lasted for just five minutes — had been given agendas, including several reports, the day before.
Among them was a report seeking approval to roll over a R53.9m flood disaster repair grant to the 2025/2026 financial year and to adjust the budget to cover an R8m shortfall for projects.
The only report absent was one on the disciplinary case against suspended city manager Noxolo Nqwazi, which was to have been presented by Pillay.
Councillors were first notified on July 4 that the meeting would take place on July 10.
It was then rescheduled for Thursday last week.
An invoice for the use of the Feather Market Centre for the meeting shows that hiring the venue cost R15,136.
An additional invoice for the PA system totalled R9,300. The system is used to support a live-streaming feed on the metro’s Facebook page.
The Herald reported on Monday that a legal opinion on Nqwazi was one of the reasons that led to the postponement of the meeting because some of the city’s political leaders were unhappy with the opinion’s recommendations.
The opinion, written by advocate Olav Ronaasen SC, gave the council two options on Nqwazi, who has been on suspension since October 2023 — reinstate her or pay her out.
In a letter sent to Pillay on Monday, Johnson asked whether she had misled the council, in light of The Herald’s report on the legal opinion.
“On the day of the council meeting, you informed me that the report was not ready and that the meeting should be postponed,” Johnson wrote.
“As the speaker of council and based on your advice, I postponed the council meeting.
“Please now advise relating to the media reports whether I have misled the council, as I need to protect my rights as the speaker.”
Johnson declined to comment on Wednesday.
Pillay, meanwhile, said the report was incomplete.
“The report was not competent,” he said.
Asked if it would be ready on Thursday, Pillay said he wanted the author of the legal opinion to present it.
“The instruction came that the city manager prepare a report, but I would like him [Ronaasen] to present it to council and then be able to engage the councillors if there are any questions,” he said.
Lobishe could not be reached for comment by the time of publication.
ACDP councillor Lance Grootboom wrote to Pillay to ask why his report on Nqwazi was not ready.
He also called for an investigation into whether the city had incurred fruitless and wasteful expenditure in postponing the meeting.
The Herald
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.