Cracks in the Inakatha Freedom Party-Democratic Alliance-National Freedom Party coalition have emerged in the eMadlangeni Municipality over the IFP's apparent attempts to stall the process of axing director of Corporate Services, Nonkululeko Maphisa, who is the wife of former Abaqulusi mayor and IFP heavyweight, Mncedisi Maphisa.

The DA and the NFP have written to the IFP to complain about its "big brother" behaviour and "political sliding" when it comes to dealing with Nonkululeko Maphisa, 27, for allegedly lying on her CV, which catapulted her to a senior managerial position. 

The two parties accuse IFP councillors of ditching council meetings meant to deal with the matter and calling public meetings to deal with other issues on days they're supposed to discuss Maphisa's future.

The DA and the NFP gave the IFP an ultimatum to whip its eMadlangeni councillors into line. 

In this case, the ANC is accused of "playing politics" and not attending or leaving meetings discussing the matter. It's unclear why the ANC, which initially pushed for Maphisa's dismissal, has allegedly abandoned council proceedings. 

The DA is staunchly against cadre deployment and records, seen by News24, suggest that the IFP uses it.

Council sat on Friday afternoon to discuss Maphisa's future. It was unclear at the time of writing what the public representatives decided. 

What is known is that the coalition partners were squabbling about the issue and the ANC is now said to be indifferent to Maphisa's axing, according to the DA and other sources. 

ANC provincial secretary Bheki Mtolo, who has previously commented on the Maphisa matter, was asked if he could take a call on the matter. He did not respond. 

In their 25 October letter to the IFP's provincial secretary, Xolani Dube, DA councillor Nickolaas Dekker and NFP deputy mayor Funelinjani Chonco raised "concerns" about the management of the coalition partnership and "unbecoming conduct" of IFP councillors.

"Sir, it looks like the IFP is disrespecting, undermining and taking us for [a] ride as coalition partners/stakeholders," Dekker and Chonco say in their signed letter to Dube.

"We would like to raise our concern on the behaviour of some IFP councillors in eMadlangeni as a leading coalition partner in eMadlangeni Municipality," they said.

They said they observed with "concern" their absence from meetings dealing with the Maphisa matter.

The two councillors said, "It cannot be correct... that an IFP councillor deliberately averts attending a council meeting and calls public meetings on the same date as a scheduled council meeting to potentially sabotage the numbers needed to address a critical and long outstanding matter. It is political sliding that the IFP has become a big brother to us as coalition government/partners and taking us for… a ride, forgetting that we are representing our political parties' interest and we account to our constituencies [sic]."

The two leaders said the IFP had "dismally failed" to deal with the Maphisa matter. 

They urged that Dube disciplines the IFP councillors, giving the IFP leader an ultimatum.

"Hence we are giving you 24 hours to deal with the matter and as political parties we are not willing to compromise our ethics, values and principles in order to satisfy and please ill-discipline[d] IFP deployees. We will wait for your urgent action and response within 24 hours of receiving this letter," the letter concluded.

Dekker confirmed he co-wrote the letter to Dube and said: "Yes, we did get a response [from Dube]. I can't give you the details. I first need to speak to the constituency leader [Dr Imran Keeka] before I issue a statement."

However, he said the matter relating to their concerns was "resolved".

Pressed on the response and the resolution, Dekker said he couldn't give more details and referred questions to Keeka. 

Dekker was given an opportunity to consult Keeka after which he agreed News24 could call him back. News24's subsequent phone calls to Dekker went unanswered.

Despite the letter, Keeka said: "There is no instability in eMadlangeni".

He said it remains "an allegation" that Maphisa lied on her CV.

Maphisa was appointed director of corporate services at eMadlangeni despite allegedly having fewer than five years' worth of the requisite work experience. She took office in her current position in July 2022.

She is recorded in an IFP deployment committee saying she did not have the requisite five years in order to become a senior manager. 

News24 previously reported that Maphisa had shared with the news site a document to show that she had worked as an assistant manager for legal services at Ulundi Local Municipality from 1 January 2017 to 6 March 2018.

However, a letter that News24 has seen, written by the then-director of corporate services at Ulundi municipality, Zweli Dlamini, rejected Maphisa's claim. In the letter confirming the organogram of Ulundi when Maphisa claims to have been an assistant manager, Dlamini said:

With reference to your enquiry in relation to the organisational structure during the period of 2016 to 2021, I confirm that the position of assistant manager did not exist nor was there any intention of creating such a position in that period.

The letter is dated 12 May 2023.

Dlamini is now a municipal manager at the IFP-run Abaqulusi Local Municipality. As director of corporate services in Ulundi at the time, Dlamini was responsible for recruitment. 

Keeka said the IFP councillors' absence in council was not deliberate, but he said the African National Congress's (ANC's) absence was by intention. 

"The ANC is playing politics. Where it suits them, they will indulge in cadre deployment, where it doesn't suit them, they will make a noise about it. Cadre deployment is wrong, whether you're for or against it. It's completely unacceptable. It should be shunned in every way."

However, a recording and minutes of an IFP deployment committee indicate that Maphisa is a political appointment. 

Keeka said an ongoing Cooperative and Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) investigation will determine whether there is misrepresentation on Maphisa's part, but he stressed that the Cogta MEC, Bongiwe Sithole-Moloi, is an ANC leader. 

At the time of writing, it was unclear what the council had decided in relation to Maphisa. Dube was called for a right of reply, but his phone also went unanswered.

News24 has established that the eMadlangeni council late on Friday, gave Maphisa seven days to explain why she should not be suspended for falsifying her work experience, while an investigator is appointed.

This is according to people in the know about the in-committee meeting's proceedings. In-committee meetings are secret and items discussed there are not meant to be heard by public members who attend public meetings.

Keeka said as far as he knew an investigator was appointed at the Friday council meeting. He called DA councillors to query information obtained by us about the seven days' notice, but at the time of writing he said he had received no update.