The African National Congress (ANC) in the North West province has defended installing a municipal manager in the Ditsobotla municipality. This follows the sudden resignation of Ditsobotla mayor Itumeleng Elizabeth Lethoko owing to what her party, the Patriotic Alliance (PA), labelled "unclean governance".

PA deputy cChairperson Kenny Kunene accused the ruling party of making decisions outside the consent of its coalition parties.

“The ANC sneaked in their municipal manager illegally, without even consulting the mayor of Ditsobotla, it goes to show that they are not committed to clean governance…,” Kunene said.

“Municipal manager is a serious appointment as he is the accounting officer. It is disturbing how they did not see it important to involve the mayor in the process,” he added.

According to ANC North West deputy chairperson Lazzy Mokgosi, coalition partners held successful discussions and agreed on a particular framework for a better delivery of services to the people.

Mokgosi said that the ANC regarded the PA’s allegations as devoid of fact, baseless and unfortunate.

“We must understand as Northwest ANC that the Ditsobotla municipality came as a result of it being disbanded and after the disbanding the provincial government appointed an administrator whose term expired around December as per council agreement,“ Mokgosi said.

Mokgosi further said that the ANC  brought no item to the council nor a motion but only a letter to notify the council of the municipal manager’s appointment from January 4, and that it was unsettling that its alliance partners instigated such a notion towards the party.

Mokgosi accused the PA of acting hastily and acting inappropriately towards the appointment letter of the municipal manager.

“They misread the letter, it was not an ANC letter of motion but from the MEC. The most important issue we were there to discuss was the issue of constituting government,” Mokgosi said.