By Lungani Zungu
The bullish DA’s Mayor of Joburg, Mpho Phalatse, is confident that the motion of no-confidence in her leadership will not sink her.
At first, the motion was expected to be tabled on Wednesday, but Joburg Council speaker Colleen Makhubele confirmed that it had been postponed to Thursday.
During a media briefing on Wednesday, Phalatse said: “My focus is not even the motion of no confidence. I think we have come to a new normal as the city of Joburg; with each council meeting we may face a motion of confidence. We have come to get used to it.”
Phalatse said the DA-led multi-party government would crush any motions of no-confidence brought against her.
The scramble between the DA-led multi-party government and ANC-led coalition is for the city’s handsome budget of R77 billion.
Phalatse said she would fight tooth and nail to ensure that she stays as mayor so she can use the budget to service the over six million residents of Joburg.
“Despite us facing yet another motion of no confidence, I, along with the members of the mayoral committee, remain as committed to our service delivery mandate as ever before,” she said.
Phalatse held a briefing on the state of Joburg’s shaky finances on Tuesday.
While she admitted that Joburg’s finances were ailing, she stressed that it was not all doom and gloom.
“While the city does not find itself in an immediate crisis, we may find ourselves in an uneasy state of financial affairs should we not approve the loan through Council,” the mayor said.
The loan she referred to is a R2 billion loan from the Development Bank of Southern Africa that was rejected by the council earlier this month.
Pictured above: Mpho Phalatse
