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The Sheriff of the Court ‘temporarily’ seized several services delivery vehicles from the Enoch Mgijima Municipality in Komani on Tuesday.
Municipality spokesperson, Lonwabo Kowa, said in a statement that the attachment stemmed from a labour dispute involving six former employees, and in which one managerial staff member was dismissed for fraud.
“This case is currently under review, with a potential settlement of two months' salary. Five other employees were initially dismissed for misconduct but won their case upon review.
“We have initiated the necessary payments to resolve the matter swiftly and as such all attached vehicles are expected to be returned promptly to minimize any disruption to essential services.
“This incident will not deter our ongoing efforts to combat fraud and corruption within the municipality,” Kowa said.
He said the vehicles were later returned by the Sheriff’s office.
The Democratic Alliance in the Eastern Cape meanwhile said the seizure of the highlighted the dysfunctional nature of the municipality,
MPL, Horatio Hendricks, said the municipality was facing severe challenges, with service delivery near non-existent, over R1.2 billion in Eskom debt, and delayed national government interventions.
Kowa meanwhile said Enoch Mgijima Municipality wanted to assure residents “that we are working diligently to ensure this temporary setback does not significantly impact our service delivery capabilities.”
He said the Municipality values the public's understanding during this challenging period.
