The disgruntled former councillors are challenging their suspension and subsequent expulsion from the party after rebelling against the Free State ANC’s Provincial Executive Committee (PEC) and voting with the opposition to elect Gilbert Mokotso as the mayor of Maluti. Moroka Attorneys have confirmed that they will be representing the second and third respondents in the case, which are the ANC National and the party’s National Disciplinary Committee (NDC). The matter is set to sit in the Free State High Court on February 14.

Mokotso - who is among the expelled councillors - was replacing the controversial Vusi Tshabalala, who was recalled by the Free State Provincial Task Team (PTT) in May 2018 after the municipality fell into a crisis over its financial woes. Not only had service delivery come to a halt with Maluti unable to pay over employees’ third-party contributions and pension funds, but the municipality has confirmed debt to Eskom of close to R3 billion – the most money any municipality in South Africa owes the power utility.

ANC Secretary in the province, Paseka Nompondo, had previously told media present at a briefing in Bloemfontein on October 2018, that the 16 individuals would remain councillors in the party until the NDC had ruled on their appeal. “When they are seen doing their work as councillors, attending council meetings, holding public meetings, they are doing what they are rightfully expected to do, but they will not attend ANC Branch General Meetings (BGMs) and Caucus Meetings until the matter is done,” he said at the time. The Councillors have alleged that members of the PEC benefited from corruption at the municipality, something which ANC provincial spokesperson, Thabo Meeko, has dismissed as the rumblings of angry people.

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