Pretoria - Tshwane Mayor Solly Msimanga survived a motion of no confidence tabled against him by the EFF on Thursday after Speaker Katlego Mathebe ruled that it did not abide with the council rules and was therefore invalid.
Mathebe's verdict was made after a DA councillor Randal Williams expressed concerns that the motion brought forward by the EFF was devoid of a written motivation as required by the council rules.
"There is no motivation for the urgency of the motion," Williams told councillors at Sammy Marks Council Chamber.
In protest against Mathebe's ruling the EFF councillors walked out of council, threatening to take the matter to court.
EFF caucus leader Benjamin Disoloane told journalists that his party councillors won't return to participate in the tabling of the second motion of no confidence brought by the ANC against Msimanga.
Disoloane said: "We submitted our motion on time. The council rules say that any urgent motion can be submitted two hours before (the) council (is due to meet). They are now saying it is not a written submission."
EFF caucus leader Benjamin Disoloane speaks to journalists. Video: Rapula Moatshe
He said that EFF councillors would not participate in the "wrong things happening in council".
"Because our motion fell out we can't sit in the council where the wrong things are happening.
"We are going to make sure that we take the speaker to court. We are going to write another motion of no confidence against the mayor again," Disoloane said.
EFF councillors walk out of council. Picture: Rapula Moatshe
Spokesperson of the ANC caucus, Lesego Makhubela, said the party won't back down on its tabled motion in council.
That was after the party councillors had requested a 10-minute break to discuss their motion after the EFF one was disallowed.
"Our politics is not about underhand politics. We came here depending on our own strength as the ANC.
"If we were joined by others we would have welcomed that.
"We are emboldened more than ever. Whether this motion succeeds or does not succeed we would have made our point.
"The ANC is not going to walk away using flimsy technicalities," Makhubela said.