By-elections are set to be held in the City of Johannesburg’s ward 102 after a DA councillor resigned late last year over intimidation and threats allegedly relating to lucrative contracts.

Gauteng’s Infrastructure Development and Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs MEC Jacob Mamabolo has set the date for the by-elections as February 25 following the resignation of DA ward 102 councillor Lucinda Harman in November last year.

The ward includes the suburbs, Blairgowrie, Bryanston, Ferndale and Bordeaux in Randburg, north of Johannesburg, among others.

The ward has experienced deep tensions over the Selkirk Social Housing Project, which involves building 145 units at a cost of at least R200 million to the city.

According to records of the Johannesburg Social Housing Company (Joshco), 27 companies submitted bids between R97m and R130m for the project. Harman had repeatedly complained about the threats she faced for doing her job.

“The threats and intimidation have ended [although] I still get these calls where no one talks. I don’t know what that is, I don’t want to presume it’s them still but I still get people phoning and they don’t talk,” she explained.

DA City of Johannesburg caucus leader Belinda Kayser-Echeozonjoku has confirmed that Harman’s temporary replacement, councillor Bea Campbell-Cloete, will be its candidate in next month’s by-elections.

Mantombi Nkosi, ANC Johannesburg regional spokesperson, said the party was at the final stages of the candidate selection process and will make details available as soon as they are finalised.

In a radio interview a few weeks ago, Harman said it was impossible to do her work under the circumstances.

“I was tired of the intimidation, dysfunctionality and these threats that go on and on. It got to a point where my mental health and my physical health took a huge decline and two weeks in hospital I kind of came out and decided it’s time to resign,” she stated.

Harman said the construction mafia was a huge problem as there were huge projects in her ward.

“Wherever there are projects you have got the biggest risk of a councillor being murdered,” she stated.

Harman further stated that had her concerns been properly addressed, she would have been able to continue in her role as ward councillor.

“When you are on your own and there is nobody behind you, it’s very difficult to carry on because you realize you are fighting a battle that’s probably going to cost you your life, unnecessarily so,” she added.

Harman said she did not want to end up being another memorial item on the council agenda.

Last month, the Ngwelezane Regional Court in KwaZulu-Natal sentenced Phakamani Eugene Khumalo and Sandile Mthokozisi Mabuyakhulu, both 33, to life, eleven years and six months imprisonment for the murder of the African Christian Democratic Party’s uMhlathuze local municipality councillor, John Funa Myaka, in June 2023 in the Enseleni area over a property sale gone wrong.

loyiso.sidimba@inl.co.za

Source link