Paul Kirk
A series of Mail & Guardian articles on corruption within the Durban Unicity Municipality has resulted in an investigation being launched into a senior council official to stop employees being “subject to trial through the media”.
Felix Dlamini, the municipal manager of the city, promised to investigate whether acting CEO Sandile Thusi held a fraudulent driver’s licence.
“The Durban Unicity Council has a proud record of dealing fairly and effectively with allegations of impropriety,” Dlamini said, adding, “We further believe that no individual should be subject to trial through the media and we therefore intend to fully investigate the matter at hand in terms of due and proper process.”
The Durban Unicity Council has recently taken a number of bold steps to muzzle the media and silence council officials seeking to blow the whistle on mismanagement and corruption or even report the most innocuous facts relating to rates increases or refuse collections.
Last week African National Congress, Minority Front and Inkatha Freedom Party councillors voted to embargo all council deliberations and only release the decisions of executive committees to the media. This will effectively prevent the media from reporting on most municipal activities.
Durban mayor Obed Mlaba claims the muzzling of councillors and officials is not an attempt at censorship, but merely a means of “improving” and “streamlining” communications.
Democratic Alliance councillor Peter Corbett last week received a letter saying he was under investigation and could face removal from the council for giving information relating to rates increases to Independent Newspapers.
Corbett is alleged to have revealed that increases of nearly 70% were imminent in parts of Durban. He will not have an opportunity to respond to allegations made against him.
The letter, written by the ANC speaker of council, Nomsa Dube, said Corbett had been accused of leaking “sensitive and confidential information” to the media and had to reply before July 26. The letter was dated July 3, but posted on July 24 and received a day after the deadline for Corbett’s response had passed. Corbett said he had nevertheless replied.
Corbett had recently written to Durban CEO Eddie Morton, asking for the current status of eight corruption investigations into council officials that he had initiated.
One of the cases involves a former member of the tender board who was caught receiving shopping bags full of money from a businessman in the council car park.
The Durban Unicity Council has completed investigation dockets on Thusi’s driver’s licence and the director of health services, Arnold Shange, who has a fraudulent law degree and no qualifications for his job.
The city auditor’s investigating team has recommended criminal action be brought against councillor Bheki (BJ) Buthelezi, who appointed Shange instead of the previous director of health, George Lithgow, who had 22 years’ experience and numerous formal qualifications for the job. Buthelezi may face criminal charges relating to alleged fraud and the counterfeiting of documents.
Lithgow appealed against Shange’s appointment and the Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration agreed that it was unreasonable. Buthelezi then commissioned an audit of Lithgow, which cost the council more than R500 000.
The audit revealed no irregularities, but Buthelezi sought two legal opinions of the findings. Both found no cause to take action. However, investigators found that a felt-tip pen was used to alter one legal opinion to make it appear that an attorney found irregularities within Lithgow’s department.