Months after the election, many eThekwini councillors are still waiting to be allocated offices. DA councillor Thabani Mthethwa ( in black shirt). File Picture.
DURBAN - SIX months after local government elections, many councillors in the eThekwini Municipality are still without the offices they need to meet with the communities they represent.
DA councillor Thabani Mthethwa said it was concerning that months after the election, many of the councillors in the municipality have not been allocated working spaces.
Mthethwa had previously raised concerns about the issue. In February this year, The Mercury reported that many of the councillors were working from the boots of their cars as they waited to be allocated offices months after they were elected into office in the local government elections.
During a council meeting on Tuesday, Mthethwa, again called on the Speaker of council Thabani Nyawose to take the councillors into his confidence as to the reasons behind delays in allocating offices to the councillors.
“It has been six months since the elections, and many councillors in this room are still without offices. The result is that the councillors have no space to meet with their community, and the community does not have access to their public representatives.
“We call on the speaker to take this council into his confidence and explain the delays,” said Mthethwa.
He had previously said that of the 69 DA councillors, 18 had offices. The problem is across all parties and resulting in communities crowding councillors' homes, “and we all know how dangerous that can be.”
“Instead, councillors have been forced to limit consultations with residents, use their vehicle boots and meet on the side of the road. This is not only a crisis but a serious security risk for councillors,” he had said.
Nyawose assured the council that the matter was being addressed by the city officials.