Nelson Mandela Bay Councillor, Thembinkosi Mafana has been relieved of his duties with immediate effect by Executive Mayor Ben Fihla.
Speaking to AlgoaFM News, Mafana said he'd received a letter from Fihla while at an ANC Regional Task Team meeting held in Port Elizabeth on Monday.
Mafana said that Fihla called him outside, without saying a word, and handed over a letter relieving him of his duties within the city's mayoral committee.
He said the letter briefly stated his removal was based on media coverage surrounding his trip to China and questions raised in Parliament.
Mafana said the Chinese were not his friends.
"They can't say they don't know those Chinese. It's their friends not my friends, because here in PE they are dining with them , even the Deputy Mayor has taken sponsorship from those Chinese, even IPads and cellphones, so I didn't get those things. The mayor was even dining with those Chinese in a restaurant, why are they acting like they don't know these Chinese?"
Mafana has since written to the office of the ANC in the Eastern Cape bringing the matter to its attention.
