Thursday 22 September 2011

This site will be updated on 30 September 2011

THE Regional Executive Committee of the ANC Boland has been suspended with immediate effect and until further notice after they made an illegitimate decision to suspend Drakenstein Mayor, Charmaine Manuel.

According to the ANC provincial spokesperson, Garth Strachan, the Working Committee of the Provincial Executive Committee of the ANC met on Monday and resolved that the decision by the Boland Regional Executive Committee of the ANC to expel Charmaine Manuel from the party, was an “illegitimate decision” and that she would continue to hold that office.

The regional executive nembers from Drakenstein who were suspended include Dan Kotze (chairperson), Edmund Pheko, Spasie Kika, Them­bsi Nkewu, Naeem Davids, Titus Hendricks and Barry Stemmet.

An investigation will be done to determine the future of these people as executive members.

The Boland Regional Executive Committee laid charges against Manuel in November 2007 relating to her alleged failure to follow protocol in announcing her mayoral committee and not taking the Boland region’s recommendations into account.

The conflict stemmed from her refusal to appoint the new ANC Boland chairperson, Dan Kotze, a Drakenstein councillor, to the mayoral committee.

But such an appointment had to be authorised by the party’s provincial office.

According to Strachan, the Provincial Office gave Manuel a letter with instructions on the election of the mayoral committee, which she followed.

“The Provincial Committee is the only body which can appoint mayors and mayoral committee members.

“Boland regional management has no powers to lay charges. Only the Provincial Office can lay charges,” Strachan emphasised.

Last year in November, shortly after Dan Kotze was elected chairperson of the ANC in the Boland, the Boland executive also laid charges of misdemeanours against Manuel, but was then repudiated by the provincial executive.

An observer said then, “Although Dan Kotze is an ordinary Drakenstein councillor, he is not on the mayoral committee of either Drakenstein or Cape Winelands District Council. It’s all about getting him onto one of these highly paid committees.”

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