Note to Editors: Please find attached soundbites in English and Setswana by Cllr Neo Mabote.
The DA in the Mahikeng Local Municipality will write to the Chairperson of the Municipal Public Accounts Committee (MPAC), Cllr Tshepiso Motshabi, requesting him to investigate the two motor vehicle accidents that the Council Speaker, Cllr Gagoangwe Mathe, was involved in last year.
Early in 2022, shortly after taking office, the Speaker was involved in an accident with the official vehicle assigned to her. This occurred less than a month after the acquisition, which was made without following the proper Supply Chain Management procedures and without obtaining Council’s approval. It is unclear if the car had insurance at this point or how much the repairs would have cost.
To date, no report about this accident has been presented to Council.
The cost of the additional vehicle, hired for the Speaker for several months while the first vehicle was in for repairs, is likewise unknown to Council.
The Speaker was involved in another accident with a municipal vehicle which she was driving herself to attend the ANC’s Elective Conference in December 2022. This is a direct violation of the municipality’s vehicle policy as she attended the event outside of the municipality’s jurisdiction and her duties as Speaker of Council.
This is just standard ANC behaviour, disobeying the law and abusing taxpayer money.
The DA demands that MPAC conduct a thorough investigation into every aspect of the two accidents and present a report to Council detailing all expenses incurred and anomalies discovered. We will continue to expose the ANC’s abuse of municipal resources and wasteful expenditure and ensure that officials responsible for breaking the law and abusing taxpayer funds are held accountable.