NMB deputy mayor Gary van Niekerk asks for DA leaders’ help in city manager battle

“We do not engage with Gary van Niekerk.”

This was the word from DA Eastern Cape leader Andrew Whitfield after he received a letter from Nelson Mandela Bay’s deputy mayor, Van Niekerk, asking him to intervene in the party’s caucus to prevent a legal opinion from being presented to council stating that former municipal manager Noxolo Nqwazi’s disciplinary hearing is fundamentally flawed and doomed to fail. 

“Gary is not credible,” Whitfield said. “I refuse to engage with him. His allegations are not credible. Also, we don’t take instructions from other political parties.

He can raise the issue in council if he wants. He is looking for a political solution, but we are not going to give him one,” he said. 

“Whatever his issues are should be addressed through council or the courts,” Whitfield said.

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Earlier this week, Van Niekerk, the leader of the Northern Alliance, was found in contempt of court for missing his criminal trial on charges of cyberfraud and contravention of the Municipal Finance Management Act, when he chose to travel overseas instead. 

The trial was postponed until 3 November for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to decide on how to proceed with the matter.

Read more: Nelson Mandela Bay deputy mayor Gary van Niekerk guilty of contempt of court

This comes after Van Niekerk’s legal team submitted representations to the DPP, which could affect the charges against him.

When Daily Maverick asked to see the representations, Van Niekerk refused, saying this would “jeopardise” his case.

On Thursday morning, Van Niekerk decided to raise the issue of the metro’s controversial, long-suspended city manager Noxolo Nqwazi, and raise his ire over being ignored by DA leaders since August.

Nqwazi was appointed in 2022 when Van Niekerk was the speaker of council, and the current speaker, Eugene Johnson, was the executive mayor.

Van Niekerk said he remembered the day very well and agreed with the DA that there had been no quorum when the council ostensibly “agreed” to appoint Nqwazi. Van Niekerk claimed that Johnson “pushed through” Nqwazi’s appointment. 

At the time, DA council caucus leader Rano Kayser requested that the national and provincial government intervene “after the unlawful appointment of Nqwazi”.

Walkout

The DA caucus and coalition partners walked out of the meeting and have always insisted that Nqwazi’s appointment was unlawful.

In 2023, Nqwazi was arrested on charges of tender fraud relating to the emergency procurement of a toilet tender for the metro during the Covid-19 state of disaster. 

Meanwhile, Johnson was removed as mayor. The DA’s Retief Odendaal was installed in the post, and in May 2023, Van Niekerk became mayor after a new coalition government was formed with the ANC as the majority party. Van Niekerk became deputy mayor in 2024 after he was arrested by the Hawks on fraud charges. 

In October 2023, Van Niekerk placed Nqwazi on precautionary suspension, still in force today, while receiving her full salary as she faces disciplinary proceedings brought against her by Van Niekerk. 

In July 2025, however, a legal opinion, written by advocate Olav Ronaasen, stated that he had been asked to advise on the viability of the disciplinary proceedings against Nqwazi, and the status of the criminal proceedings against her. This would enable the council to reach an informed decision on whether it should persist with or withdraw the disciplinary proceedings and continue to pursue a settlement with her, in terms of which her employment with the municipality would terminate.

Also read: Showdown over future of Nelson Mandela Bay city manager expected on Thursday

The disciplinary hearing against her had been put on hold pending negotiations for a settlement, but the National Treasury has refused to approve a departure allowing a settlement to be paid, suggesting that the disciplinary proceedings should first be pursued to completion.

Ronaasen’s opinion, however, stated that as the charges brought by Van Niekerk against Nqwazi related to decisions made by the council, these were unlikely to succeed. It would be prudent to abandon the charges, he found.

It was over this legal opinion that Van Niekerk decided to take on the DA Nelson Mandela Bay caucus, to no avail. 

Van Niekerk has accused Whitfield of ignoring him. He said yesterday that he would now turn to the chair of the party’s Federal Council, Helen Zille, for help.

Van Niekerk said the metro’s “council” had never asked for Ronaasen’s legal opinion – even though it is stated in the opinion that the metro’s council requested it. 

“None of us, the mayor or myself, briefed advocate Ronaasen. We still don’t know who briefed the advocate,” Van Niekerk said. 

He claimed that the fact that the DA wanted a council decision on Ronaasen’s opinion meant that they supported Nqwazi’s return. 

In his letter to Whitfield, Van Niekerk wrote:

“I write to bring to your urgent attention my deep concerns regarding the actions of the DA Caucus in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (NMBM), which appear to be aimed at reinstating the suspended City Manager, Dr Nqwazi.

“As you are aware, Dr Nqwazi is currently suspended on serious charges and continues to face criminal charges for fraud. As Executive Mayor at the time, it was my responsibility to act in the best interests of both council and the city by ensuring her suspension and initiating disciplinary action.

“Dr Nqwazi’s team has caused repeated delays to the disciplinary process, citing medical leave and changing legal representation as reasons to stall the proceedings. These actions have raised further concerns about the integrity of the process. The metro continues to face widespread challenges relating to corruption. My efforts to address these issues have been met with resistance from various departments and officials.”

Van Niekerk said that for a settlement to be settled with Nqwazi, she would first have to return to the municipality. 

“The legal opinion claims that both the criminal and disciplinary cases against Dr Nqwazi are weak. This assertion is simply untrue. It is my understanding that the attorneys and the advocate responsible for the opinion were not properly briefed,” Van Niekerk added, saying they had information that could change the opinion. DM