Durban - The DA has rejected the directive by eThekwini mayor Mxolisi Kaunda that councillors should not be allowed to conduct oversight visits at municipal infrastructure sites without permission.
“He (the mayor) was quite adamant and put out a directive to officials not to engage with councillors, and councillors are not to get access to municipal infrastructure to take photographs or videos because he felt that interferes with the operations. One has to ask how can that be if no one is working?” said DA councillor Andre Beetge.
Last week Kaunda gave a directive that security at municipal infrastructure should not allow councillors to enter those sites without permission from the municipal manager.
Kaunda is concerned that councillors take pictures and obtain information about city infrastructure (especially dysfunctional sites) and distribute it in public, thereby damaging the image of the City.
Beetge said the oversight visits were in line with councillors’ job description.
“On what basis is the mayor making this decision or giving this instruction? The DA will pursue all avenues to make sure that residents are informed of the realities of what is going and not only the positive picture that the mayor tends to pain. We will definitely challenge him because there is no way that the mayor can curtail public representatives elected by the people to keep them informed of the realities. The reality is that in eThekwini, we have problems.”