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The Democratic Alliance (DA) in eThekwini has reliably been informed that the eThekwini Mayor, Cllr Mxolisi Kaunda, EFF’s Themba Mvubu, City Manager, Musa Mbhele and other senior officials are currently on a holiday disguised as a strategic workshop in the Drakensberg.

The mayor and his entourage have chosen to take a short left during a time of massive water outages in the city which is affecting thousands of residents and businesses in the Pinetown, Chatsworth and Westville areas.

The mayor tends to be missing in action when he is needed the most by the residents of eThekwini. A case in point is the July unrest when the economy of the city was brought to its knees by looters, while the mayor was posting slogans on social media in support of looters. Also, during the April floods last year, the mayor was never on the ground and was completely absent from the communities when he was most needed. The same can be said about the city manager who is regularly abroad while the city collapses.

It must be noted that the mayor last year invited the city’s senior management to Jozini in what was also labelled as a strategic workshop. Among the issues discussed and resolved at that “workshop” included fixing the city's collapsing infrastructure, water and sanitation, electricity and filling critical vacancies. Sadly, none of the resolutions have ever been implemented. It was simply another talk shop, a holiday for the mayor and officials and a waste of the ratepayer's money.

The mayor's “excursion” to the Drakensberg is a slap in the faces of residents and businesses who require action from Kaunda on the crisis that the city is in.

The DA urges all political parties to support the DA’s motion to dissolve the council so that residents can get a fresh opportunity to elect a new government that will fix the city and ensure that things are being done.

Issued by Cllr Thabani Mthethwa - DA eThekwini Caucus Leader