The Patriotic Alliance's lone councillor Marlon Daniels has been appointed as the Nelson Mandela Municipality Economic Development Directorate head.
The metro announced on Wednesday afternoon that Daniels would replace Noluthando Pink who will now be taking up a new position as the safety and security MMC.
Executive Mayor, Mongameli Bobani said the decision came after consultations with the coalition government and Daniels.
Bobani said Daniels had accepted the position, adding that this meant the coalition-government in the Metro would now have 61 councillors and would be able to pass the R12.6 billion 2019/2020 budget at its next council meeting on Friday.
"We are now 61 councillors, meaning that we will pass the budget on Friday," said Bobani. "But, it's not only about the budget, it's about ensuring that all the parties are coming together so that we can collectively run the City," he said.
Daniels will officially be introduced as part of Bobani's mayoral committee on Thursday morning. He was unavailable for comment late on Wednesday.
Earlier in the day, a furious Daniels walked out of a council meeting where Mayor Bobani had unsuccessfully tried for a fourth time to have the draft operating budget passed.
Needing 61 votes to pass the budget, Council came up one vote short. Sixty councillors voted for the budget while 58 Councillors were against it.
Daniels stormed out of the meeting after telling the Speaker that threats had been made against him and his family if he did not support the budget. He vowed that the budget would not be passed on Wednesday.
The Speaker postponed the meeting to this Friday and reminded Council that the budget must be passed before the 30th of June deadline.
