Durban - The new municipal manager for the eThekwini Municipality must be an individual who has managed a “big” municipality or organisation.
That is the new amendment that has been added to the selection criteria for the job. The amendment specifies that the suitable candidate must have been in charge of an entity that has more than 1 500 staff members and a budget of R5 billion or more.
A source aware of the changes said eThekwini was “no longer interested in candidates from municipalities that have a handful of wards”.
The metro has restarted its search for a municipal manager after attempts to fill the vacancy in April failed.
Its executive committee discussed the issue yesterday under confidential items and approved the recommendation to put out a new advert for the post carrying this new amendment.
In the recommended requirements, the report, seen by The Mercury, shows that apart from the issue of budget and staff, recommended candidates must also have eight years of relevant experience at managerial level in a large organisation of which five years must be at senior management level.
“A large organisation is defined as having between 1 500 and 2 500 employees, an operating budget of between R5bn and R40bn and a capital budget of between R2bn and R5bn,” it said.
With eThekwini being the biggest municipality in the province and the only metro, the amendments limit the possibility of candidates coming from within the province’s local government sphere.
“The reason to include the management experience in a large organisation as an essential requirement is to assist the interviewing panel to shortlist the candidates with relevant experience and (who) have operated in an environment that is similar to the municipality,” said the document.
The amendment would sound a death knell for Max Mbili’s bid to be city manager. After the initial interviews, Mbili was recommended for the post by the interview panel, however, the opposition parties voted against it.
The parties had been unhappy with how the recruitment process had been carried out and accused the ANC of interference.
Mayor Mxolisi Kaunda has steadfastly denied that there was any interference with the process.
Mbili had taken the city to court to demand that the council’s reasons for blocking his appointment be declared irrational and unreasonable and for the council to reconsider its decision not to appoint him. The case is expected to be heard before the Durban High Court on August 3.
Mbili is the municipal manager for the Ray Nkonyeni Municipality on the South Coast. The Ray Nkonyeni municipal budget statement posted online, shows that the municipality has operating expenditure for the 2022/23 financial year of R1.2bn and a proposed capital budget of R183 million.
Despite the threat of legal action, the city has resolved to continue with restarting the process.
Thabane Miya, of the EFF, Philani Mavunda, of Abantu Batho Congress, who is also the deputy mayor, and Thabani Mthethwa of the DA are now part of the interview panel.
Opposition party councillors declined to comment on the amendment to the job requirements for the city manager post, as they said any discussions “in committee” were confidential.
Mayoral spokesperson Mluleki Mntungwa said he was not aware of the matter.