Note to Editors: Please find attached English and Afrikaans soundbites by Cllr Louise Verwey and Sesotho soundbite by Cllr Mahalia Kose.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Tswelopele strongly condemns the unlawful and unconstitutional manner in which special council meetings are abused by the ANC and EFF. This compromises service delivery as decisions are made without transparency or accountability, leaving the public unable to scrutinise or challenge those decisions.
The DA will report this serious governance breach to the Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs.
These meetings were called and conducted by the Mayor, Ms Rose Kenalimang Phukuntsi, and the Speaker, Ms Moeder Raseu on 17 and 24 April, respectively.
17 April 2024 – In terms of the Standing Rules and Orders, special meetings may only be convened under clearly defined urgent circumstances, which must be stated in the agenda. The failure to do so renders the meeting procedurally defective and unlawful.
The agenda for the 17 April 2026 special meeting, circulated to councillors the day prior, did not contain any motion, urgency, or point of order explaining why a special council meeting was called.
The ANC councillors caucused in the Municipal Chambers for more than an hour prior to the meeting, and when they entered the town hall, they did not have a quorum. The mayor then ordered ANC Councillor Mr Dail to collect the EFF Public Representative, Ms Shupping, from her home to ensure a quorum.
The Municipal Manager, Mr Manele, arrived at 11h40 with freshly printed agendas, which were handed to attendees, indicating that the agenda had been changed at the last minute after caucusing. Nothing on the agenda justified a special meeting.
At 11h35, more than 35 minutes behind schedule, the Speaker opened the meeting. None of the Municipal Directors was present, the meeting was not recorded, and no one documented resolutions or took minutes.
24 April 2026 – Councillors received an agenda with 5 discussion points. This meeting was again not recorded. When a public representative asked if the meeting was being recorded, the Speaker confirmed it was. Minutes later, the mayor repeated this claim. The councillor questioned this, noting that speaking through a microphone does not mean recording.
The Municipal Manager, Mr Manele, then confirmed the meeting was not being recorded, claiming the matters were too sensitive.
During this meeting, councillors were handed a 6th discussion point, even though only 5 were listed on the agenda. The ANC councillors introduced this additional item, discussed it, and adopted a resolution, another breach of the Standing Rules and Orders.
The absence of any official recording or minute-taking is a serious breach of governance standards, as it removes any verifiable record of proceedings.
Council meetings are the highest decision-making platform in local government and must be conducted with transparency, proper record-keeping, and strict adherence to the law.
Residents deserve a municipality that operates within the law, is transparent, and acts in the best interests of the community.