Durban’s newly elected 219 ward and PR councillors will be sworn into office next Wednesday, during an Inaugural Council meeting for the new term - but it will be a while before the serious business of running the city gets under way.
According to the proposed calendar for the establishment of the new council, the next four months will be dominated by induction and orientation programmes.
Only two full council and two executive committee meetings have been scheduled for the remainder of the year.
No committee meetings have been scheduled.
After being sworn in next week, councillors will attend an induction programme.
In September, a series of computer training sessions have been scheduled alongside inaugural support committee meetings.
Between October and January, councillors will undergo Co-operative Governance and Traditional Affairs orientation training.
Between November and December, ward committees will be established, followed by an induction of the ward committees in January.
The first executive meeting will take place on Wednesday, followed by the pomp and ceremony of the this term’s first full council meeting.
The agenda for the day is largely taken up by swearing in of the councillors, the election of the Speaker, mayor, deputy mayor and chief whip, followed by their swearing in.
The new Speaker of the council will make a few remarks, which will culminate in an address by the city’s new mayor.
The only other executive committee meeting and full council meeting - where municipal items are expected to be placed on the agenda - will take place on September 27, followed by a full council meeting on September 28.
In the run up to next week’s first council meeting, political parties will be wrapping up who will represent them in the city’s executive committee and the various other committees.
The eThekwini municipality’s executive committee will likely comprise of six ANC members, three from the DA and one from the IFP.
While the ANC was tight-lipped about who would comprise its executive committee team, it’s been widely reported that in addition to mayor-elect, Zandile Gumede, Fawzia Peer will be her deputy, while William Lekgoa Mapena is tipped to be the Speaker.
Other ANC executive committee members include Zama Sokhabase, Mondli Mthembu and Sipho Kaunda.
The DA, which increased its Exco seat by one this term, was expected to hold elections for positions of chief whip, deputy caucus leader and deputy chief whip.
Provincial leader, Zwakele Mncwango is the only person on the ballot for DA caucus leader, and is assured a spot on the executive committee table.
He will choose the other two executive committee members.
During the first meeting, all councillors will be given declaration forms to which they must declare the shares and securities in companies, membership in closed corporations, interests in any trust, directorships, interests in property, employment and remuneration, and any pensions they may have.
They would have to declare these interests to city manager, Sbu Sithole, within 60 days.
Daily News