Ewald Loock (DA) was voted out as mayor of the Dr Beyers Naude Local Municipality earlier today, May 18.
Chief whip of council, Ricardo Smith (DA) was also removed, with a casting vote from the speaker, Cheslin Felix (CSA).
The meeting took place this morning.
After a third attempt in three weeks, the ANC’s Xolile Galada succeeded in his intention to remove Loock and Smith from their positions by tabling a motion of no confidence in them.
His previous two attempts failed when the DA, EFF and Freedom Front Plus walked out of the meeting, just to leave council without a quorum to vote on the item.
The DBNLM’s council is a hung council with 11 ANC and one CSA councillor working together against 12 other councillors (10 DA, one EFF and one FF+).
This morning the two sides of council brought the vote by means of raising hands on 12 against 12.
With the speaker having a casting vote, Felix supported the ANC with his casting vote.
The meeting was postponed until Monday, May 23, to give the speaker an opportunity to adhere to the DA, EFF and FF+ request to test the legality of voting out Loock and Smith.
They raised their concern that the DBNLM council is led by a mayoral committee and not an executive mayor, as stated in Galada’s motion.
Eldridge Ruiters, chief whip of the DA, explained that in the case of removing the chairperson of a mayoral committee as mayor, a legal process of giving notice of the intention to perform such act, must be followed.
“In this case it wasn’t followed, so the whole process was illegal,” Ruiters said.
After the two leaders’ removal, no one was elected in their place, awaiting the outcome of legal advice to the speaker.
After the meeting Loock said that legal advisers can still declare his removal illegal and that he can get back his mayoral seat.
For now the Dr Beyers Naude municipal district is without a mayor.