Cogta rules NMB city manager suspension unlawful as metro faces leadership vacuum

Nelson Mandela Bay has spent more than R5.8-million on a suspended city manager who has yet to face a disciplinary hearing — and now the Eastern Cape cooperative governance and traditional affairs (Cogta) MEC has ordered her reinstatement.

MEC Zolile Williams wrote to mayor Babalwa Lobishe and council speaker Eugene Johnson this week, instructing them to allow suspended city manager Dr Noxolo Nqwazi to return to office.

Williams said her ongoing suspension was unlawful, as no disciplinary hearing had been held within the legally required three-month window.

Nqwazi was arrested over her alleged role in the approval of a R24-million tender for toilets in informal settlements. The tender — awarded during the Covid-19 National State of Disaster — was later flagged by the Special Investigating Unit.

Williams’ instruction followed a letter from Nqwazi’s lawyers to the mayoral troika — comprising the mayor, speaker and acting city manager — on 29 April, demanding her reinstatement by 1 May.

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Williams confirmed receipt of the lawyers’ letter and on Tuesday instructed that Nqwazi be allowed to return to office, saying her continued precautionary suspension without disciplinary proceedings was unlawful.

“Given the prolonged suspension of Dr Nqwazi, under the circumstances, the municipality is advised to accept that the precautionary suspension of Dr Nqwazi has lapsed and she must be permitted to resume her duties. The municipality may still continue with the disciplinary hearing, but there are no legal grounds to continue with the precautionary suspension of Dr Nqwazi.

“It is not disputed that at some point there were sittings of the disciplinary inquiry, the attorneys however contend that these sittings did not amount to commencement of the disciplinary hearing because charges were never put to their client. The sittings were meant to deal with preliminary issues, specifically some documentation which was sought,” the letter read.

Williams said the municipality failed to begin disciplinary proceedings within three months of the decision to institute action, as required under regulation 10(1)(a) of the Local Government Disciplinary Regulations for senior managers.

In its letter, Meyer Inc attorneys stated that a disciplinary charge sheet had been issued to Nqwazi in April 2024, and a disciplinary hearing was scheduled to begin in May of the same year.

“At the initial sittings of the disciplinary hearing, before the commencement of the said disciplinary hearing, our client raised various points, and the disciplinary sitting was eventually postponed in order for our client to get copies of the requested documentation she sought to prepare for the disciplinary hearing,” reads the letter.

“To date, no documents as requested were received by our client from the municipality, whilst our client remains on suspension in excess of two years pending the commencement of the disciplinary hearing.”

The lawyers said Nqwazi’s ongoing and unlawful suspension had enabled continued financial prejudice to the municipality and the ratepayers.

They demanded, “That the envisaged unlawful commencement of a disciplinary hearing against her be revoked and withdrawn; and her reinstatement to the position of city manager of the municipality with effect from 1 May 2026, with full restoration of all powers, functions, and privileges attendant thereto.”

The city has coughed up more than R5.8-million, which covered her monthly salary and the payment of those appointed to act in her position for the past 30 months.

While the city has relied on roving acting city managers to function since Nqwazi’s suspension, the delays in appointing permanent executive directors have also affected the delivery of services in the city.

The city appointed CFO Jackson Ngcelwane as the acting city manager during a council meeting session held behind closed doors on 30 April, but the council failed to appoint an acting CFO in his place.

This has left a vacuum in the CFO’s office and raised questions about Ngcelwane’s contract as permanent CFO – a contract he apparently has yet to sign.

This prompted deputy mayor Gary van Niekerk to write to Williams on 2 May, raising concerns about the issue.

“Council meeting of 30 April 2026 changed the recommendations in the (mayor’s) report without consideration that the current CFO has not signed the employment contract for the position; it therefore means that council appointed a senior director (only employment contract on record) as an acting city manager without an item in council which leaves the institution with no acting person,” wrote Van Niekerk.

“The appointment of the Chief Operating Officer (Ngoqo) as the acting city manager would have ensured stability in the office, and considering he is the only permanent senior manager with a legally binding signed employment contract who can act as the acting city manager, he would have facilitated the process of completing the appointment of the CFO.”

Johnson responded by explaining that Ngoqo had already acted as city manager for two three-month terms and was therefore not eligible for further appointment.

Ngoqo was appointed to act for three months on 30 September 2025. His acting tenure elapsed in December, but he continued to work until January 2026, when Williams granted the City permission for Ngoqo to act as city manager for a further three months.

“Just from the resolution of 30 September, the six months’ acting tenure of the COO (Ngoqo) would have ended by 31 March 2026. The decision to appoint him was ratified by council. It must be noted that the actions of the mayor (to appoint Ngoqo) were a direct consequence of a council resolution,” wrote Johnson in the response letter.

“It is a fact that the mayor did request to the MEC an extension of the three months that ended 31 December 2025, and that extension was granted by the MEC for a further three months, which was going to end by 31 March 2026. It is a fact that Mr Ngoqo acted for a further month (April 2026) without a council resolution and without a concurrence requested from the MEC and directed through a council resolution. That, on its own, is a violation of the legal framework.”

Johnson explained that Lobishe wrote to Williams of her own accord, requesting that the council appoint Ngoqo for a further six months without a council resolution.

Williams agreed to the request; however, on 30 April, when Van Niekerk was acting as mayor, the council rejected the item as it was unlawful for Ngoqo to act in the position beyond six months.

This resulted in the appointment of Ngcelwane to the position, as one of only three other senior managers who are permanently employed, including Ngoqo and executive director for human settlements, Tabiso Mfeya.

Asked about the vacuum caused by the appointment of the CFO as acting city manager, Williams’ spokesperson Pheello Oliphant said: “The municipality will today call a special council meeting to appoint an acting city manager, and Mr Ngcelwane will return to his CFO position.”

However, Johnson said she had not called a meeting as she was preparing to fly to Cape Town to attend the parliamentary Cogta committee.

ACDP councillor Lance Grootboom said they were deeply concerned, but not surprised, by Williams' letter on the prolonged Nqwazi suspension.

“For almost three years, Nelson Mandela Bay has been left without a properly functioning city manager, while the suspended city manager has reportedly been paid more than R2-million per year to sit at home. This means that close to R6-million of public money may have been spent over this period without residents receiving the full value of that office.

“This is not just an administrative error. It is a political failure. The ANC-led coalition dragged its feet, missed the legal timelines and allowed this matter to become a costly embarrassment for Nelson Mandela Bay.”

Good Party councillor Lawrence Troon said Williams’ letter placed the municipality in a difficult position.

“The city is a conundrum because Nqwazi is still in court for the matter she was placed on suspension for, so having her back at the helm of the city will be risky.” DM