Outgoing Joburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda has blamed former mayor and ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba for the city’s woes.
Gwamanda resigned this week amid pressure and claims of incompetence.
He resigned after civil organisations and political parties accused him of failing to meet the required mayoral standards.
Gwamanda, of the Al-Jama-ah political party, was elected mayor in May 2023 as a compromise candidate after the ANC, EFF and the PA formed a coalition to oust a DA-led coalition in the city. Initially, Thapelo Amad was elected mayor, but he resigned amid claims he was not fit for the job.
In an interview with SABC News, Gwamanda claimed that under his leadership, Joburg residents saw improved service delivery during his tenure.
“There have been no issues that were registered during that particular period (his tenure), and the Government of Local Unity (GLU) did in fact do their best to ensure that we restore to some of the level the service delivery that was required in the City of Johannesburg,” he told the public broadcaster.
Gwamanda said the City had strong performance over the past three months and the last financial year.
He said that his tenure as mayor was challenging from the start, with baseless attacks surfacing just days after he took office.
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Gwamanda claimed the city’s service delivery breakdown began under former mayor Mashaba.
“The service delivery breakdowns in the City of Johannesburg started during the tenure of Herman Mashaba, the reason why I am saying that it’s because he has always had his issues with the African National Congress (ANC).”
“Everything that has got to do with the City of Johannesburg, he perceived as the ANC so much so that he terminated so many contracts in the city and brought service delivery to a complete stand still,” he said.
Mashaba served as mayor from 2016 to 2019 under the Democratic Alliance (DA), but left the party due to disagreements with its political leadership.
He later founded his own party, ActionSA, in 2020.
Gwamanda said there’s a difference between a mayor talking on television about non-existent issues and one on the ground addressing real problems in communities.
“For someone to have initiated and started a breakdown of an entire City, and then find convenience because there’s pressure for him to represent the constituency as an individual.”
Meanwhile, ActionSA has welcomed the approval of Gwamanda’s resignation as the mayor of Johannesburg, citing his tenure as one marred by failure and incompetence.
Nobuhle Mthembu, ActionSA City of Johannesburg caucus leader said: “Our intervention was crucial in precipitating Gwamanda’s resignation. We could not stand by and watch Johannesburg deteriorate further under his leadership.”
Mthembu highlighted that Gwamanda’s administration was characterised by ineptitude and a tendency to shift blame rather than address pressing issues.
“We do appreciate that this is not end of problems for the residents of the City of Johannesburg, but is it the beginning of stabilising the city from the council point of view, and working with us in bringing a relief to the residents when it comes to service delivery, and other matters they are very concerned about,” said ActionSA’s Funzi Ngobeni.
The ANC has nominated Finance MMC Dada Morero for the mayoral position and expressed hope in him that he will take the CoJ to its former glory. Morero is also the ANC’s Johannesburg regional chairperson.
The election of the new executive mayor to lead the City of Joburg will take place on Friday.
