Durban - The former deputy mayor of the eThekwini municipality and President of the ABC Abantu Batho Congress, Philani PG Mavundla, has confirmed that he has resigned as a councillor in the only metro in KwaZulu-Natal.
Mavundla was a thorn in the flesh of the governing party who led to the demise of an ANC - ABC coalition, said he sent his resignation letter to the Speaker, Thabani Nyawose, on Friday.
At some point, his private spats with mayor Mxolisi Kaunda from the ANC became public knowledge when their heated conversations were leaked to the media.
NEWS: Former eThekwini deputy mayor who is also the President of the ABC, Philani PG Mavundla, has confirmed that he has resigned as a councillor of the metro. Mavundla was a thorn in the flesh of the governing party, and that led to a bitter political fallout. @IOL
— Sihle Mavuso (@ZANewsFlash) February 28, 2023
In one of them, Kaunda told Mavundla to stop behaving as if he was the mayor and told him to stay in his lane as the deputy mayor.
The sour relationship came to a boiling point in December last year when the ANC kicked Mavundla out using a vote of no confidence.
UPDATE: Philani PG Mavundla's ABC has apologized to the people of eThekwini for its Nov 2021 coalition that kept the ANC in power when voters have rejected it. Mavundla's party said it mistakenly thought that the ANC could be persuaded to champion the cause of the poor. @IOL
— Sihle Mavuso (@ZANewsFlash) February 28, 2023
His attempt to legally force the ANC to honour their coalition pact which he said was binding until 2026, failed.
The Durban High Court dismissed his urgent application to be reinstated.
That paved the way for the ANC to get Zandile Myeni of the NFP (National Freedom Party) to be elected to the deputy mayor position.
On Tuesday, the ABC confirmed Mavundla’s departure and apologised for their November 2021 coalition pact that kept the ANC in power, when the voters had rejected the party by not giving it an outright majority to govern alone.
“The ABC wishes to apologise profusely to the people of eThekwini for supporting an ANC-led government when the people had chosen to remove the ANC from power in the 2021 local government elections.
“At the time, it was our genuine belief that the ANC would be persuaded to join our cause in championing the interests of the condemned people of eThekwini by accelerating service delivery.
“Holding officials and office bearers accountable as well as seeing to the real and true socio-economic emancipation of our people.
“Sadly, this was not to be.
“As the people of eThekwini have borne witness, our president (councillor) PG Mavundla was removed from the executive committee solely for pursuing this very cause,” the ABC said.
Asked whether he was returning to Umvoti (Greytown) where he was once a mayor under the ANC around 2011, Mavundla said: “Not yet, the party is looking at a number of options.
“Remember we are now at the 2023 campaign season,” he added.
The rumour that he could be returning to his hometown was fuelled when on Monday one of his party’s councillors resigned, leading to speculation that he was opening the way for Mavundla’s return.
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