DURBAN - THE future of Sipho Nzuza as the eThekwini municipal manager hangs in the balance after the Durban Commercial Crimes Court yesterday dealt a serious blow to his attempts to return to work.
The court ruled that Nzuza could not resume his duties as city manager while the criminal case against him was under way.
Nzuza, who is out on bail on corruption allegations, had gone to court to apply for some of his bail conditions to be relaxed. He argued that the bail conditions were restrictive and did not allow him to do his job.
A judgment handed down by regional magistrate Garth Davies held that the bail conditions should remain in place. He also tightened some of the bail restrictions, a move that could prove devastating to Nzuza’s prospects of returning to work. One of the conditions states: “The accused may not perform the functions of the accounting officer of the municipality until the criminal trial is concluded.”
The two-page judgment stated: “After hearing the evidence of the applicant and the investigating officer and considering the papers and affidavits filed on the record and after the considerations of submissions of counsel, the application for the amendment of certain conditions and the deletion of others to enable the applicant to return to work as a nearly fully functional city manager as set out in his notice of motion is dismissed.
“The court is satisfied that the interest of justice requires that the conditions be amended and it is ordered that the conditions imposed at the bail application dated March 10, 2020, and modified at the hearing dated November 16, 2020, be further amended to read that the accused may not communicate in any way, whether directly or indirectly with the witnesses as set out in the indictment to the charge.”
Another condition was that Nzuza may not enter the premises at which those witnesses employed by the municipality work. The court further stated that the accused may not be directly or indirectly involved in the disciplinary processes of the municipality in respect of any other person until his criminal trial was concluded.
The court directed that the accused may not participate directly or indirectly in any tender process during the duration of the criminal trial. It further said that the accused should not directly or indirectly participate in any or all supply chain management processes.
Responding to the judgment, Nzuza said his lawyers would study it and take it on review.
“The judge did not review any of the conditions and in fact added that I should not do the functions of the city manager, something that I consider to be unfair, but at the moment we are studying the full judgment,” he said.
Reacting to the ruling, opposition parties yesterday said that under the current bail conditions, Nzuza and the city should consider parting ways. The council was expected to discuss Nzuza's matter during a council meeting today.
IFP councillor Mdu Nkosi said: “If there are things that he cannot do, the city of eThekwini is sitting with a problem; we cannot have a city manager that cannot do his job fully.”
The DA’s Thabani Mthethwa said: “The honourable thing for him to do is to resign, alternatively for the city to seek a legal opinion that will facilitate his exit. We cannot have a situation where we have the city manager sitting at home earning big money.”
Spokesperson for mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, Mluleki Mntungwa, said Kaunda was studying the judgment.
THE MERCURY