Nasiphi-Moya says her focus is on Tshwane residents, not politics. Photo supplied
The city of Tshwane’s newly appointed mayor, Nasiphi Moya, has vowed that she will not allow “lazy and corrupt” individuals in the city administration to be protected under the new governing coalition.
Moya, who was elected through an alliance of the ANC, Economic Freedom Fighters and ActionSA, said in an interview with the Mail & Guardian that she is aware of the challenges and complexities of leading a coalition that reflects diverse political ideologies.
“I told my president [Herman Mashaba]: Don’t ever expect me to be hiding corruption or any maladministration to protect the coalition,” Moya said.
“That’s not my job. So where there are those red lines, I will pull the plug. This is not a PR exercise to promote the coalition campaign, but teamwork.”
Moya is the second woman to serve as Tshwane mayor, following the ANC’s Gwen Ramokgopa, who held the position from 2006 to 2010.
She replaced the DA’s Cilliers Brink, whose 18-month tenure ended two weeks ago in a vote of no confidence.
As the city’s fourth mayor in three years, Moya faces the challenge of uniting her coalition to address pressing issues such as financial instability and crumbling infrastructure.
“We’ve come together based on shared goals, not personalities,” she said, adding there was a need for a unified vision to improve service delivery for residents.
The new Tshwane coalition represents a significant shift from the previous DA-led government, which faced criticism for prioritising certain areas of the city over others.
Moya said she is committed to ensuring equitable service delivery to reverse the DA’s culture of “excluding townships” in service delivery.
“At the core of our coalition is the belief that Tshwane residents deserve better than what they have received in the past,” she said.
To promote collaboration within her coalition, Moya plans to establish a local coalition management group consisting of party leaders who will meet regularly to address differences and set priorities for governance.
It will help stabilise the coalition, address differences, and assist in prioritising decisions affecting the city.
“We need to agree on which decisions require broad consultation and which ones I can take executive action on,” she said.
Moya expressed confidence that a shared commitment to improving Tshwane will guide the coalition forward.
“We have to put adulting at the forefront when things get heated,” she said.
Moya said she believes effective governance will require open dialogue and compromise among coalition members and is optimistic about its future, despite concerns around its longevity.
She also addressed criticism from opposition parties, who have suggested that the coalition was doomed because it included the EFF and ANC.
Brink has voiced strong concerns, stating that Moya would effectively serve as a “mayor of an ANC and EFF alliance”.
He said that the partnership reflects a broader effort by the ANC to regain control in Gauteng at the expense of effective governance, asserting that the coalition has a history of disruption and internal conflict.
Moya was not moved to respond to the criticism, arguing that doing so would be “giving energy to nonsense” after the DA led administration failed to successfully lead the city.
“When they were congratulating me, Freedom Front Plus emphasised the need to implement the recommendations from forensic investigations. I’ve been in this coalition for nine months, and we have never discussed implementing those recommendations. So I found myself wondering where this willingness was when he was part of the coalition,” she said.
She said while criticism is part of the job, she is focused on residents and not politics, and urged the opposition to offer constructive solutions rather than criticism.
Moya’s immediate priorities include stabilising Tshwane’s finances and improving service delivery as the city grapples with significant financial challenges and infrastructure issues.
“We must get our finances in order—there is no other way around it,” she said.
Without sound financial management, service delivery would suffer, she said.
Her immediate priorities include improving financial transparency and accountability to combat inefficiencies and corruption.
She has already introduced digital systems aimed at enhancing oversight in supply chain management.
“This system is going to help us prevent issues like tender manipulation.”
As part of her strategy, Moya said she is focused on completing stalled infrastructure projects, valued at R2 billion, to avoid losing crucial funding from the Treasury.
“We can’t afford to return money to the Treasury because we missed deadlines,” she said.
In an effort to avoid further financial troubles, Moya said she will be meeting with the South African Municipal Workers Union to discuss a way forward ahead of the November 28 court case over the union’s demands for higher wages.
This follows a recent labour court ruling to have Tshwane’s two review applications heard in November. The applications pertain to the city’s refusal to implement a 3.5% salary hike for employees in 2021 and another 5.4% wage increase in 2023.
The city claimed that it did not have the R600m needed to implement the wage agreement.
“I have completed my plan for restoring our relationship with labour, which also involves strengthening our connections with officials,” Moya said.
“This is a top priority for me, ranking third on my agenda for the next 100 days. We need to discuss an upcoming proposed increase that requires review, as resorting to court would indicate a lack of trust and a strained relationship.”