Opposition parties in the City of Johannesburg have expressed their anger at the DA’s interference in recruitment processes in the City of Johannesburg.
The City has had a number of vacant senior posts and has been fingered for the dismissal of 130 workers whose contracts were deemed illegal.
The City currently has two acting secretaries to council. This comes after the secretary to council affiliated to the ANC, Vicky Shuping was sent on special leave following concerns with her contract. The City now has two acting secretaries of council who are now both on the City’s payroll. Opposition parties such as Al Jama-ah have accused the
DA of reserving jobs for Cape Townians.
“We have only one acting secretary to council which is Andile Gcobinca as endorsed as adopted by council on 22 and 23 of June 2022,” the opposition parties said in a statement.
The parties demanded to know who gave the new acting secretary to council the right to chair an exco meeting and to interfere in other matters while there is another acting secretary.
“Council is the highest decision making body and no individual can override its decision. This is the kind of mismanagement that we as the opposition parties have been complaining about that the speaker has become a law unto himself,” the parties said.
The opposition parties said they had indicated numerous complaints to the speaker of Council, Vasco da Gama. But they said he was also complicit in interfering with jobs in the City.
“The speaker also gave unlawful instruction that his chief of staff be part of the recruitment process of researchers in the administration. This chief of staff participated in short-listing which is seen as political interference,” they said.
The parties also accused the speaker of having the new secretary to council participate in the short listing of candidates for the legal advisor’s position contrary to HR policy.
“We have on good authority that the legal team in the legislature is vehemently opposing this as it is contrary to HR policy.”
According to the parties the speaker had been interfering in recruitment processes despite being told that it was illegal to do so.
“This act by the speaker is a direct interference by the executive in the legislature processes. An interesting question was then asked by the HR director as to who must sign the appointment letters in his office since the legislature has two acting secretaries,” the parties said.
The parties claimed that the council was still paying the suspended secretary full salary,
“As opposition parties we strongly condemn the actions of the DA led administration and their own subjective interest. The DA led government finds it easy to mingle in administrative issues and this is a reflection that they don’t care about lawful process,” the parties said.
The City of Joburg said it will revert back to The Star on the matter.