Durban - The man in charge of the city's legal and compliance unit has been fired. Gideon Phungula has been found guilty of racism, gross dishonesty and hate speech.
The move to fire Phungula has been hailed by the Democratic Alliance who said the ruling speaks extensively to Phungula not feeling answerable to the city manager but rather to certain political figures.
The DA's Nicole Graham said the ruling also speaks to Phungula's use of derogatory racial slurs against Krish Kumar and other Indian colleagues.
"The DA had reported this matter to the Human Rights Commission, and fervently rejects racism of any sort. Phungula's exit from the city cannot be the end of this matter. The Democratic Alliance has written to City Manager, Sipho Nzuza, demanding to know just how Phungula was employed," she said.
Graham said Phungula's own admissions show that senior administrative posts are being given to those doing the ANC's dirty work and that politicians are clearly involved.
"We believe that a full investigation needs to be conducted by the city manager to clearly indicate which politicians were involved in hiring Phungula and for what purposes. They too must be taken to task for this," she said.