The former deputy city manager for trading services in eThekwini has revived his battle to get the current city manager, Musa Mbhele, charged and eventually axed for the legal bungle that has seen the municipality having to pay almost R52-million to a company whose tender was arbitrarily cancelled around 2015.
According to Sibusiso Makhanya, the role of Mbhele in this matter amounts to exposing the municipality to wasteful expenditure.
Makhanya has since unleashed his lawyers from MacGregor-Erasmus Attorneys to compel the council to act against Mbhele.
Late last week, the Constitutional Court dismissed a frantic bid by the ANC-EFF-IFP-NFP-run eThekwini municipality in KwaZulu-Natal to appeal a Supreme Court of Appeal ruling that compelled it to pay R30-million plus interest to Pholobas Projects, the company that had its tender unfairly canned.
Not only did the municipality face humiliation, but it also faced the burden of paying interest and substantial legal fees to the Durban-based company.
The debts accumulated from the year when the tender was arbitrarily cancelled, and the final amount the badly managed metro has to pay, including legal costs, is estimated at R52-million.
Lawyers want Mbele to face consequences
In its ruling, the Constitutional Court said the appeal by eThekwini has no prospects of success. It dismissed the appeal without even having an open hearing.
Makhanya’s lawyers said a precedent was set when their client had to accept a settlement and leave when he was accused of wasteful expenditure for failing to instruct the legal department of the municipality to defend a lawsuit, and a default judgment was issued.
The lawyers emphasised that the apex court had ruled on the matter, and they urged Mbhele to face the consequences.
They also threatened to take further legal action if the council fails to act.
“This letter is to be treated as a report as envisioned in terms of regulation 3(1) of the regulations, and we expect it to be tabled by no later than seven days from the date of this letter or at the next sitting of council.
“No further indulgences or communications will be forthcoming from our client, and should you fail to act as you are obliged to, then we hold instructions to approach the appropriate forum for the necessary relief. We look forward to hearing from you,” reads the letter that was sent to eThekwini mayor Cyril Xaba.
Municipality backs city manager
In response to Makhanya’s lawyers, Malusi Mhlongo, the head for legal services and compliance in the municipality, said it was not Mbhele who decided to take the matter to the Constitutional Court but the council.
Therefore, he cannot be blamed for the ruling or held accountable for incurred costs.
“The matter was deliberated upon on 25 March 2025, and the executive committee resolved, in terms of regulation 5(1) of the Municipal Regulations on Financial Misconduct Procedures and Criminal Proceedings, 2014, that it was not satisfied that there was reasonable cause to believe that an act of financial misconduct had been committed by the city manager, Mr Mbhele,” Mhlongo said in his response.
“The decision of the executive committee was informed by the fact that the monies expended in defending the ratepayers’ money did not constitute wasteful expenditure.
“There has never been an instance where the legal costs, for work done by the legal representatives, constituted wasteful expenditure, irrespective of the court outcome.
“The executive committee fully supported the decision to approach the Constitutional Court.”
