ActionSA has filed a court application to force City of Tshwane speaker Mncedi Ndzwanana to allow a motion of no confidence tabled against him.
This emanates from two other motions of no confidence that the party, led by the businessman Herman Mashaba, had instituted against Ndzwanana.
Gauteng leader of ActionSA Funzi Ngobeni said: “Our approach to the courts is premised on the reality that the multi-party coalition in Tshwane will not achieve stability with an ANC/EFF-sponsored speaker at the helm.
“As a party which believes in the rule of law, ActionSA also does not believe the speaker should be allowed to misuse rules to shield himself from the democratic accountability principle of a motion of no confidence.
“In our court papers, we are asking the motion of no confidence against him, and for a motion of no confidence to take place at the next available council sitting which should be presided over by the city manager.
“ActionSA cannot allow the City of Tshwane council to disintegrate into chaos and will therefore head to court to ensure that the proper functioning of the council is restored.
“Councillor Nzwanana ascended to the seat of speaker on the back of a dodgy EFF-ANC agreement to vote for small and minority parties in a bid to destabilise coalition governments ahead of the 2024 elections, where the ANC is likely to be removed.”
Ngobeni said his party will continue to place the needs of the residents of Tshwane first and “will not allow the ANC and EFF to get away by playing political games.”
In its application, which we have seen, Mashaba’s party state that a decision taken by Ndzwanana to disallow an urgent motion of no confidence in himself as the speaker be reviewed and set aside.
Court papers read in part: “That the impugned decisions be substituted with the following order that the special council meeting is postponed to 10h00 on the day that is two business days from the date of this court’s order.
“The third respondent is prohibited from chairing, adjourning and/or interfering, whether directly or indirectly, with the functioning of the special council meeting.
“The city manager, or, if the city manager is not available, a person designated by the MEC must preside over the election of an acting speaker at the special council meeting and the acting speaker elected at the special council meeting must take all reasonable steps to ensure that the motion of no confidence in the speaker is considered and decided by council during the meeting.
“That the decision taken by third respondent, in his capacity as speaker during the special council meeting held on Thursday, 29 June 2023 to disallow an urgent motion of no confidence in himself as speaker be reviewed and set aside.”
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