PLETTENBERG BAY NEWS - The Plettenberg Bay Residents and Ratepayers Association has questioned the appointments and pending appointments of senior Bitou municipal officials in letters to the mayor and the Western Cape local government MEC.
In the letter to Bitou mayor Jessica Kamkam, the Ratepayers highlighted the possible appointment of Christopher Mapeyi as the new Bitou CFO, questioning his suitability.
The Ratepayers have also forwarded the letter to Western Cape local government minister Anton Bredell, saying that they have been informed that Mapeyi, from Chris Hani District Municipality, "is the preferred candidate for CFO at Bitou Municipality and will soon be given an offer".
"Judging by the annual reports of the municipality he comes from, serious questions exist about his suitability for Bitou."
Financial prejudice
The letter said Bitou Council's record shows that its choice of incumbents for senior positions has repeatedly not met expectations.
"This has resulted in financial prejudice to the municipality and we request that you scrutinise his appointment very carefully before approving it."
In the letter to Kamkam they expressed concerns over the qualifications and suitability of Mapeyi as CFO, as they did in 2022 when he was hired but was a no-show on his first day of work in January 2023.
"Of particular concern at the time was whether his performance at Chris Hani District Municipality and the various investigations into irregularities and maladministration were brought to the attention of the HR department and selection committee prior to his appointment," said the Ratepayers.
The Bitou municipal building in Sewell Street. Photo: Chris van Gass
Criticism
The appointment then saw widespread criticism due to Mapeyi's involvement in the Chris Hani District Municipality in the Eastern Cape, whose 2021 audit and unaudited financial report for 2022 revealed a shocking state of affairs.
Auditor-General Tsakani Maluleke said the municipality could not account for how it had spent R1b of the R1,043b it had received in equitable share and grant allocations.
"Please note our previous objections… that under Mr Mapeyi's leadership at Chris Hani District Municipality, there are still major governance and internal control contraventions/failings, as shown by missing their financial results by 40%."
If he failed to run Chris Hani properly, the Ratepayers question his ability to properly run Bitou, a full-blown municipality with much higher levels of complexity, higher visibility, and dependency on performance to sustain its paying ratepayer base and its real estate, services and tourism-based economy.
They also say that Mapeyi's record and past history are concerning. "Mr [Mbulelo] Memani [Bitou municipal manager] stated two years ago that they were friends, so he may be partial and not objective.
"Bitou has made some disastrous senior management appointments in the past few years; let's not repeat it," the Ratepayers told Kamkam.
Lobese
The Ratepayers have also questioned the appointment of former Bitou mayor Peter Lobese at the municipality as manager of councillor support, which was not confirmed as the municipality had not replied to their query.
The organisation says former mayor Lobese's track record when holding positions of trust in Bitou Municipality "was appalling" in terms of the 2019 Western Cape Department of Local Government Forensic Investigation report, and should have counted heavily against his employment as a manager.
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