Lerato Mbhiza
Joburg City Manager, Floyd Brink, has been reappointed three weeks after the Gauteng Division of the High Court ruled his appointment unlawful and ordered that he be replaced within 10 days.
In a statement released on Wednesday afternoon, Joburg Mayor Kabelo Gwamanda said they re-tabled and adopted the previously adopted report to appoint Brink as the City Manager.
“The City still believes the High Court failed to independently and without bias, consider the valid and substantial legal arguments presented before it on the process enlisted by Council in approving the report to appoint the City Manager in February 2023.
“In its wisdom and with due consideration of the urgent demands to stabilise the administration of the City and to expedite service delivery, Council today resolved to retable the report on the appointment of the City Manager and to ratify the areas identified by the Court as rendering the appointment unlawful, invalid and unconstitutional,” he said.
Gwamanda said the Council’s decision now renders the intention to petition the Supreme Court of Appeal on the same matter moot.
“On behalf of the City we once more congratulate Mr Brink on his appointment and look forward to continued administrative stability and uninterrupted delivery of services,” he said.
The DA vehemently opposed and voted against the motion, but was defeated as it did not have the necessary majority. This comes after it challenged Brink’s appointment, which took place in February, in the High Court.
On 7 November, acting Judge Steven Budlender ruled in favour of the DA and ordered that Brink’s appointment be reversed due to the unlawful processes leading up to Brink’s appointment.
The City, however, filed an application for leave to appeal. On Monday, the application was dismissed with costs by the same judge on the basis that it bore no prospects of success and there had been “no other compelling reason for leave to appeal to be granted”.
Following Wednesday’s council meeting, city spokesperson Mlimandlela Ndamase said they were still of the view that the High Court had “failed to independently and without bias, consider the valid and substantial legal arguments presented before it on the process enlisted by council in approving the report to appoint the city manager in February 2023”.
Ndamase said the re-tabling and subsequent appointment of Brink was to expedite service delivery and ratify the areas identified by the court as rendering the appointment unlawful, invalid and unconstitutional.
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