PRETORIA, Gauteng — The African National Congress (ANC) in the Greater Tshwane Region has confirmed that removing Tshwane Mayor Dr. Nasiphi Moya is not currently under consideration, despite mounting political pressure. However, the party insists that Mayor Dr. Nasiphi Moya must be held strictly accountable for recent controversial council decisions and ongoing questions surrounding alleged upgrades at her private residence.
Key coalition partners in the city, ActionSA and the ANC, are currently at odds over the mayor’s leadership. The ANC has accused ActionSA of failing to hold the mayor accountable for council decisions that have gone against other coalition partners, emphasizing that she must not be shielded from scrutiny. An ANC representative clarified that the public is not demanding the mayor divulge her personal finances, but rather that she must be held accountable for her conduct and address whether allegations of corruption are true. The party stressed that the onus is on the mayor to provide evidence disproving the allegations by clearly explaining her actions and how any related expenses were paid.
ActionSA has firmly dismissed these allegations, labeling them as a calculated political campaign designed to tarnish the party’s image just two and a half months before the local government elections. A representative for ActionSA argued that political opponents are feeling the pinch due to the growth and service delivery successes Mayor Dr. Nasiphi Moya has achieved under the ActionSA banner.
ActionSA further stated that it has never shielded anyone from scrutiny, noting that the mayor recently presented a report to the council that she herself went against, which the party views as a violation of the coalition government’s spirit. In response to media inquiries, the mayor has reportedly provided evidence demonstrating that the company responsible for the work on her house was not a registered service provider to the city.
The coalition dynamics remain delicate, with both parties holding key positions in the Tshwane executive. The ANC deployed its senior regional leader, Eugene Modise, as the deputy executive mayor. While Modise has faced his own public scrutiny regarding tender projects in Tshwane, his party maintains that the mayor must equally face the music. Despite the friction, both parties appear to grasp the severe risk of collapsing the Tshwane executive so close to the local government elections. The ANC reiterated that it has not reached the stage of passing a motion of no confidence, pointing to its own track record of acting against an MMC implicated in the Madlanga Commission at record speed as proof of its commitment to accountability.
Political analyst Sandile Swana weighed in on the escalating tensions, describing the public spats between the ANC and ActionSA as classic political maneuvering ahead of elections. Swana emphasized that political parties must be continually reminded of their constitutional mandate, irrespective of the election season.
“In South Africa, there are certain minimum things that a municipality must supply to you. Those things must be supplied 24 hours a day, 365 days a year; they must be there,” Swana explained. He warned that the current confusion stems from elected officials in various spheres of government tending to move away from their core duties based on election urgency and opportunism, thereby drifting from the minimum rights guaranteed to citizens by the Constitution.