Politics.za

But if Helen Zille gives Dr Mgoqi what he wants she will be seen to be in a weak position and his demand for a full salary package was an insult both to her and the ratepayers in Cape Town. Even if she does give in to Mgoqi, there is no guarantee that Mgaqi will go away as he still can harrass Zille through the courts as he is now doing. I think Zille should actually take a tougher line and have him physically removed from the office is is still “ocupying” even though he was fired two weeks ago. She should also seek legal redress by preventing him from coming to the Civic Centre and causing havoc.

I fully understand that line of reasoning however it just seems that every headline about this Zille/Mgoqi fight is a headline that could’ve been about something positive that the DA has planned.

Also there is the fact that the court case over the contract will only start on May 9th if I remember correctly. So until then the majority of headlines will be about the fighting rather than something like service delivery (something that could actually cause the ANC some bad PR). I was all for just putting Mgoqi in an office and ignoring him but according to DA Mal as long as he’s got the title “Municipal Manager” he wields a lot of power.

I realise that the DA are the offical opposition but sometimes their ‘come out the corner swinging’ approach is not the best one to take.

I agree with you that service delivery should be the focus. I hate the legal uncertainties that go with lawsuits of this nature. I hope that Wallace Mgoqi will be removed before May 9th especially in light of the fraud charges that are pending against him. Mayor Helen Zille is also seeking legal advice on how to prevent Mqoqi from causing more trouble than he already has. Surely there must be a way to bridge this gap in the meantime until the Cape High Court meets on May 9th such as an interdict or restraint order as a means of legal recourse.

Given the recent actions of Wallace Mgoqi, certainly this will go against him in the Cape High Court meeting on May 9th when it meets to decide on his dubious contract with the city.

All this seems depressingly trite, compared to strike violence from security guards and the weekend’s appalling murders. But I convince myself city politics is important in its own way.

You’re both right, and for excellent reasons. Unfortunately, two rights do not necessarily right a wrong…

An immediate resolution of Mgoqi’s behaviour involves sacrifice of tactical political advantage. The sum of money it would take to pay him off is not large by comparison to a R6 billion city budget. And the risks involved leaving such a loose cannon in the municipal manager’s office are clearly very high, as he is involved in serious efforts to destroy the government. So why not pay him off, as Farrel suggests? It’s a Good Idea.

Kevin’s pointing the way to the answer: the multi-party government is attempting to govern for the long haul, and so a strategic view of the problem is better advised.

Also, in that strategic sense, it does democracy no good expediently to clear the decks of ANC saboteurs.

The ANC must be seen attacking the basis of our democracy. This is what they do. The public must be allowed to observe this. What lessons will be learned if we pay off corrupt ANC officials? What advantage is there to play into the hands?

The ANC only appears to seek to destroy the city government. But in fact they more urgently seek to destroy the DA’s credibility as and defenders of democracy and public probity. We will not allow them that opportunity. Hence we will not pay off their stooges. Hence this one will go down to the wire, on a point of profoundest principle.