First blood in ELM corruption drama? – Municipal Manager ‘moved’

VANDERBIJLPARK. – The growing billing corruption scandal at Emfuleni Local Municipality(ELM) seems to have claimed its first political victim last week when the municipal manager was apparently redeployed and replaced temporarily by an ANC stalwart.
Yunus Chamda, a well-known ANC politician and municipal manager of Sedibeng District, will from May 1 be the acting municipal manager for Emfuleni on a three-month contract. This news follows weeks of revelations on ELM corruption by parallel investigations conducted by the Democratic Alliance (DA) and Vaalweekblad.
But the “redeployment” of Sam Shabalala as South Africa’s highest-earning municipal manager – with a salary of almost R3 million per annum in one of the country’s poorest performing municipalities – has not laid a growing corruption and political crisis to rest.
The DA, asked for comment by Vaalweekblad, demanded a management review of all contracts entered into by Shabalala, especially those dealing with forensic investigations into ELM corruption and cable theft.
“An immediate and incisive review must be launched immediately at ELM into any contracts or proposed contracts either concluded or being considered by Shabalala whilst in office. Of special interest are investigations into corruption over the last few years that are very slow and amount to a creeping cover-up because the ANC-led ELM does not want a scandal in an election year,” said DA Councillor Phillip Nothnagel
Nothnagel and DA Member of Parliament Hendrik Schmidt have conducted investigations into ELM corruption. Gauteng DA leader John Moodey has also written to the Gauteng premier and provincial police chief demanding an independent probe of municipal corruption province-wide.
Shabalala will now apparently have to take a pay cut and is to be moved to the portfolio of chief director: Utilities and Strategic Projects. He stays on as a member of the staff for the remainder of his contract.
His redeployment comes after an information blackout imposed by Executive Mayor Simon Mofokeng following the exposing of widespread corruption with both household and corporate billing by Vaalweekblad and Democratic Alliance investigations.
ELM imposed an information blackout on the media last week, saying the executive mayor would address the corruption matter at a press conference only at the conclusion of investigations. Also read ELM’s media statement below.