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Said in Council

This week in council · 27 February 2025

Speaker adjourns council for grave disorder during Operating Adjustment Budget vote

The 28th Ordinary Council Meeting and the 6th Special Council Meeting, both on 27 February 2025, covered the adjustment budget, City Manager recruitment and condolences for Councillor Z. E. Mathe.

By Said in Council (AI draft from the record)

AI draft.Written by Claude Opus 5.5 from this site's record of 2 sittings, not by a reporter, and not checked by a person. Code checked every sentence: it cites the moments it rests on, and any sentence with a number or name not in those moments was dropped. Click a link to check it yourself.

Operating Adjustment Budget vote and adjournment

At the 28th Ordinary Council Meeting on 27 February 2025, the Speaker put Item 56A, the Operating Adjustment Budget, to the house, and some councillors answered no. 27 Feb 02:46:09 During the Item 56A vote, Legal tried to confirm a quorum by body count while councillors moved around, and a show-of-hands vote began, with no result announced. 27 Feb 02:46:09 The Speaker adjourned the 28th Ordinary Council Meeting because of grave disorder during the Item 56A vote. 27 Feb 02:46:09

After the Item 56 debate closed, an ANC councillor asked for a one-hour caucus to speak with other parties. 27 Feb 02:40:34 The Speaker refused the one-hour caucus request, ruling that established practice is to continue once debate has opened and that Item 56 had been elevated at an MMC's request. 27 Feb 02:40:34

Party positions on Item 56

In debate on Item 56, the Freedom Front Plus said the adjustment budget remains unfunded and that it will not support it. 27 Feb 01:48:21 The DA rejected the adjustment budget and the funding plan, saying councillors were asked to approve it without the second-quarter and Section 71 reports. 27 Feb 01:54:37 GOOD said it cannot support the adjustment budget in its current form. 27 Feb 02:06:22 ActionSA rejected the adjustment budget because it did not scrap or reduce the electricity fixed charge, which ActionSA put at R230. 27 Feb 02:12:05

The UDM supported the adjustment budget but raised concern about rising liabilities and falling cash reserves. 27 Feb 01:59:44 The ANC said it supports the operating and capital adjustment budgets and the funding plan, but with serious concerns. 27 Feb 02:23:51 The EFF supported the operating adjustment budget but rejected the capital adjustment budget as a bare list of increases and decreases without analysis. 27 Feb 02:18:53 The MMC for Finance, Cllr Arnolds (AIC), said the surcharge is common in metros and that the adjustment budget needed no rebasing. 27 Feb 02:31:59

Late start and City Manager recruitment

The 28th Ordinary Council Meeting started late because the earlier Special Council Meeting ran over. 27 Feb 00:05:45 At the 28th Ordinary Council Meeting, Legal reported 211 councillors present, so there was a quorum. 27 Feb 00:28:37

Council approved Item 60, the commencement of the recruitment process for the City Manager, on voices, with the Freedom Front Plus recording its dissent. 27 Feb 01:43:13 Cllr Masuku (ANC) said the City Manager recruitment depends on outsourced competency assessments and vetting, so a two-month finish cannot be guaranteed. 27 Feb 01:43:13 Cllr Masuku said the Executive would bring the quarterly report on acting arrangements for senior managers, including ratification of Section 56 appointments, to the March 2025 Council meeting. promise

Special meeting for Councillor Z. E. Mathe

The 6th Special Council Meeting on 27 February 2025 was held in honour of the late Councillor Z. E. Mathe, who served Ward 24 and died on 17 February 2025. 27 Feb 00:09:28 27 Feb 01:07:03 MMC Mnisi delivered the condolence message for the absent Executive Mayor. 27 Feb 00:12:00 27 Feb 00:15:22 The ATM said government failed to protect Councillor Mathe when red flags were present, and the UDM criticised those in the chamber who opposed protection for ward councillors. 27 Feb 00:37:17 27 Feb 01:02:57

MMC Tshwaku, speaking for the EFF, said a getaway car linked to Councillor Mathe's killers was intercepted through the TRU and Vumacam, and that the case is with the Hawks. 27 Feb 00:47:26 MMC Tshwaku committed to provide a camera and two radios for each VD on the road into Ward 24, in memory of Councillor Mathe. promise Mr Scebiso Masondo, Councillor Mathe's nephew, said the council did not protect Mathe and asked the City to protect its councillors. 27 Feb 01:20:55 Officials were asked to blow out the candle on Councillor Mathe's seat in the ritual known as ukusula igama, officially removing his name from the chamber. 27 Feb 01:07:03

From the record

Councillors who spoke in the moments cited:

Albert Tefo RaphaduANCAlex ChristiansDABrenda Happy DammieANCChris Avant-SmithDAChristopher Glen SantanaDACornelis BoerFF+Cynbetha Phumla NhlapoEFFHelen Nonhlanhla MakhubaIFPJohn Motlhware MokomeCOPELois Cathleen SimonsePALubabalo Cecil MagwentshuATMMargaret Nobuhle MthembuActionSAMargeret Sheron ArnoldsAICNomoya Daphney MnisiANCSteven Paledi NkonyeniActionSATabisa Anthea MogapiEFFThapelo AmadAl Jama-ahYongama Ludwe ZigebeUDM

How this was made: Claude Opus 5.5 read the chapters, decisions, votes, promises and follow-ups of these sittings as this site records them (not the raw transcript), wrote 25 sentences that each cite their sources, and code removed 0 sentences it could not match to the record. How this site works · Corrections.