Several local community structures are accusing the Makhado Municipality of nepotism as far as the appointment of candidates in senior positions is concerned. This follows the announcement made by Mayor Samuel Munyai in his budget speech in June that the municipality had already interviewed candidates to fill the positions of the municipal manager and directors.
Speaking to Limpopo Mirror, the chairperson of the Waterval Youth Forum, Mr Falaza Khosa, said: "The community came to us complaining about the corrupt employment of 10 people who are related to five top political leaders within the Makhado Municipality."
Khosa said that the youth forum would like to see how a democratic and transparent recruitment process was done. "Failing to treat this matter urgently, we are going to lodge an official complaint with the national office of [the department of] Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs," he said.
Mr Patrick Sikhutshi, chairperson of the Zoutpansberg Community Development Forum, was also not satisfied with the recruitment process. He was firmly set against the alleged nepotism tendencies by the Makhado Municipality when recruiting workers. "We have witnessed nepotism by the Makhado Municipality in the recruitment process for a long time. The municipality violates certain principles enshrined by the Constitution. They waste a lot of money on advertising posts, yet they know exactly whom they will hire," he said.
The spokesperson for the Makhado Municipality, Mr Louis Bobodi, said that although interviews for the positions of municipal manager and directors had already been conducted, the outcome had not been finalised yet. "We do not have the names yet of those who will be filling the positions," Bobodi said.
The Sinthumule Kutama Crisis Committee and Sinthumule Kutama Concerned Group, however, rubbished Sikhutshi's allegations about irregular appointments. "This is driven by jealousy and bitterness after he failed to relaunch his political career in the ANC," said Elijah Liremi, the chairperson of the Sinthumule Kutama Crisis Committee. He added that both the Sinthumule Kutama Crisis Committee and Sinthumule Kutama Concerned Group would mobilise the community in support of the municipality.