---
title: "Criminal charges ‘don’t automatically force municipal managers to step aside’"
description: "The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs says councils can take action against municipal managers facing criminal charges, but there is no automatic requirement for them to step aside – a position that has particular relevance to suspended Nelson Mandela Bay City Manager Noxolo Nqwazi."
type: "NewsArticle"
publisher: "Daily Maverick"
site: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za"
section: "AGE OF ACCOUNTABLITY"
author: "Kyran Blaauw"
author_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/author/kyran-blaauw/"
canonical_url: "https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-09-03-criminal-charges-dont-automatically-force-municipal-managers-to-step-aside/"
published: "2026-09-03T19:26:48"
lang: "en-ZA"
word_count: 908
---

# Criminal charges ‘don’t automatically force municipal managers to step aside’

> The Department of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs says councils can take action against municipal managers facing criminal charges, but there is no automatic requirement for them to step aside – a position that has particular relevance to suspended Nelson Mandela Bay City Manager Noxolo Nqwazi.

By Kyran Blaauw · Published 3 September 2026, 21:26 SAST

## Key points
- Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa tells Parliament that facing criminal charges does not automatically force municipal managers to step aside – the presumption of innocence must be respected.
- Municipal councils, however, can pursue disciplinary action or precautionary measures if alleged conduct amounts to misconduct under the Municipal Systems Act or threatens service delivery, records or witnesses.
- The guidance lands amid Nelson Mandela Bay’s chaos: suspended City Manager Noxolo Nqwazi remains on trial over a R24.6m Covid-19 toilet tender, has been paid while off duty and her contested reinstatement has deepened the leadership vacuum.
- Hlabisa says each case must be judged on its facts – conviction or lawful dismissal triggers consequences, but there is no blanket rule to remove charged officials.

## Content

Municipal managers facing criminal trials are not automatically required to step aside from their posts, Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa has told Parliament.

Hlabisa was responding to a written parliamentary question from DA MP Marina van Zyl, who asked whether municipal managers facing criminal trials should remain in office while their cases were before the courts.

His response comes as Nelson Mandela Bay’s suspended City Manager, Noxolo Nqwazi, continues to face criminal charges linked to a controversial R24.6-million Covid-19 toilet tender.

[Read more

Leadership vacuum in NMB triggers warning of administrative takeover

May 12, 2026 ![Image](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/tTRh-5xi_JYTu_-M4UEN-56tluc=/450x0/smart/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/MC-Toilets-Estelle_6.jpg)](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-05-12-leadership-vacuum-in-nmb-triggers-warning-of-administrative-takeover/)

In August, the DA laid criminal charges against municipal managers at several municipalities, including Makana and Sundays River Valley in the Eastern Cape. But Hlabisa said the institution of criminal proceedings against a municipal manager did not, in itself, disqualify the official from continuing to serve.

“The presumption of innocence must be respected,” he said, adding that criminal charges alone did not automatically terminate an employment relationship.

“As the minister, I do not condone corruption, misconduct or any conduct that undermines ethical administration, good governance or public confidence in municipalities.”

His response also made clear that municipalities did not have to wait for criminal proceedings to conclude before taking action against an official.

Councils must consider whether the conduct underlying the criminal charges could also amount to misconduct under the Municipal Systems Act, the applicable code of conduct, an employment contract or other employment obligations, the minister said.

Hlabisa said factors to be considered included the seriousness of the allegations, whether the alleged conduct was linked to the manager’s official responsibilities, the risk of interference with municipal records, witnesses or investigations, and whether the official could continue performing the functions of the post.

![Tori-Municipalities-fundingfreeze](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/VbJ-nUVKnobTLUbTR6KpyVNAILE=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/attachments/orphans/ED_610301_547893.jpg)

*Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Velenkosini Hlabisa. (Photo: Gallo Images / Sharon Seretlo)*

Councils should also consider the municipality’s operational and service-delivery interests, as well as public confidence in its administration, he said.

“Depending on the facts and circumstances of the particular matter, the municipal council may institute disciplinary proceedings and, where lawfully justified, adopt appropriate precautionary measures while the allegations are under investigation or adjudication,” he said. Such measures, however, could not be used as a substitute for a finding of guilt.

The response is particularly relevant to Nqwazi, who has been at the centre of a protracted leadership crisis in Nelson Mandela Bay. The metro has gone through a revolving door of acting city managers during her absence.

![Andisa-Suspension](https://cdn.dailymaverick.co.za/i/tGYZ2rpGu_O-jQyyo1bGJyI65O8=/200x100/smart/filters:strip_exif\(\)/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2022/10/MC-Toilets-Estelle_6.jpg)

*Nelson Mandela Bay’s suspended City Manager Noxolo Nqwazi. (Photo: Deon Ferreira)*

The metro’s leadership vacuum was also noted when Parliament’s Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs committee found the metro had no permanent or acting city manager after Lonwabo Ngoqo’s contract expired at the end of April.

The council had selected CFO Jackson Ngcelwane – who has since died – to act, but he declined, due to a potential conflict of interest. [Despite this, internal job advertisements were issued under Ngcelwane’s name as acting city manager](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-05-17-cogta-committee-calls-for-criminal-probe-into-nelson-mandela-bays-dubious-job-adverts/), prompting committee chairperson Zweli Mkhize to call for an investigation and criminal case.

Nqwazi was first placed on precautionary suspension in [October 2023](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2023-10-22-conflict-riddled-nelson-mandela-bay-places-city-manager-on-precautionary-suspension/)after Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana demanded that action be taken against her as a condition for the release of R781-million in grants to the metro.

Godongwana also called for action to be taken for the way in which a senior executive director of the metro, Andile Qwaba, was given a golden handshake of R3-million, only to be appointed at the Nelson Mandela Bay Development Agency a few weeks later.

### Suspended for a second time

She was suspended for a second time in February 2024 after returning to work on the grounds that no disciplinary hearing had been initiated within three months of her initial suspension.

[In May, Parliament’s portfolio committee](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-05-06-who-is-running-nelson-mandela-bay-metros-city-manager-crisis-deepens/) on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs heard that Nqwazi had continued to receive her salary while off duty. The metro’s acting executive director for corporate services, Yolanda Dakuse, said Nqwazi had been paid R6.7-million between February 2024 and April 2026.

There have been several attempts this year to secure Nqwazi’s return to her post. [In April, Nqwazi’s lawyers, Meyer Inc](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-05-05-cogta-rules-nmb-city-manager-suspension-unlawful-as-metro-faces-leadership-vacuum/), wrote to the metro demanding that she be reinstated by 1 May. In May, Eastern Cape MEC for Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs, Zolile Williams, instructed the metro to reinstate her. The City has yet to act on the directive.

Nqwazi’s criminal case stems from her tenure as acting city manager in 2020, when the metro awarded a R24.6-million contract to HT Pelatona Projects to construct toilets during the Covid-19 pandemic.

She and former Human Settlements executive director Mvuleni Mapu are the only two accused who remain on trial after the Gqeberha Specialised Commercial Crimes Court discharged their co-accused following successful Section 174 applications in February.

[Nqwazi and Mapu’s discharge applications were unsuccessful](https://www.dailymaverick.co.za/article/2026-02-05-two-senior-nelson-mandela-bay-officials-still-face-charges-as-others-cleared-in/?dm_source=blocks-horizontal&dm_medium=card-link&dm_campaign=inform&dm_position=15). They remain charged with fraud and contravening the Municipal Finance Management Act and have pleaded not guilty.

Hlabisa said that if a municipal manager was convicted of an offence affecting their suitability to hold office, or was found guilty and dismissed following properly constituted disciplinary proceedings, the council would have to implement the consequences required by the applicable legal and employment framework.

“There is no automatic rule that every municipal manager facing criminal trial must either remain actively in office or vacate office solely because criminal proceedings have commenced. Each case must be assessed on its own facts,” Hlabisa said. **DM**