Pretoria - The National Council of Provinces (NCOP) will conduct its oversight visit in the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality on Wednesday.
NCOP's select committee on cooperative governance and traditional affairs, water and sanitation chairperson China Dodovu said the visit was to assess the conditions that led to the dissolution of the municipality by the Gauteng provincial government.
Dodovu also said the visit would focus on interactions with the external stakeholders such as organised business, community representatives and all the stakeholders that were directly affected by the intervention.
The visit follows engagement with political parties that are represented in the council, Cogta MEC Lebogang Maile and the labour unions.
The committee had received presentations on the constitutional, procedural and substantive matters on the intervention.
“The inputs from the internal stakeholders equipped the committee with adequate information to make an informed and credible decision that places the people of Tshwane at the centre. The committee’s main consideration is to ensure that the people of the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality receive quality services for what they pay,” Dodovu said
He also said the committee remained cognisant that there was a leadership vacuum at both legislative and executive levels of the municipality.
"The city currently does not have a mayor and the municipal manager, and the unavailability of both has a direct impact on the governance of the municipality as the constitution, Municipal Structures Act and Municipal Act stipulate that those positions must always be filled."
Dodovu after the Wednesday visit, the committee would carefully consider all the submissions, and make a decision on whether to make a recommendation to the NCOP to approve or disapprove the intervention.
Last Thursday, eight out of nine provinces voted in favour of a motion by NCOP chief whip Seiso Joel Mohai that the NCOP consider the Gauteng government's notice to dissolve the metro at its meeting to be held in the city this week.
This was despite protestations from the DA that the process was being rushed through when there were other notices for dissolution of councils from two other provinces.
In his motion, Mohai said the NCOP should resolve to sit in a plenary in Gauteng March 19 and consider the report of its select committee on the notice of dissolution issued.