Mukokomani challenges Mayor Mbaiwa's legitimacy

ONALENNA MODIKWA
Staff Writer | Friday May 27, 2011 00:00

Mbaiwa was reinstated as mayor through a special full council meeting after the High Court ruling that nullified the previous elections of mayoral office bearers. Councillor Amex Mponwane, who argued that there had been a lot of irregularities in the way the last special full council meeting was convened, opened the debate on the issue.

He said that it was unlawful for the former Town Clerk Kutlwano Matenge to have convened the meeting, as he had no authority to do so. Matenge, who has since been transferred to Francistown, convened a special full council meeting after 10 councillors requested him to convene it as the council had no mayor or deputy following the High Court ruling.

Advice was sought from the Local Government Ministry's PS who also supported the need to have the two vacancies filled.

At the time of convening the meeting the council had no mayor or deputy as Mukokomani had lost the High Court case in which he challenged his removal from office. The same court had nullified the election of Mbaiwa and Odirile Kelebetse into the mayoral office

In support of Mponwane, Mukokomani argued that the District Officer Ditlhogo Mmualefe as an ex-officio in the council was not supposed to conduct the mayoral elections during that special full council meeting. He also stated that councillors were supposed to have appointed someone, among themselves, to conduct the elections - not the District Officer.

He also said the minutes that had just been endorsed were a gross violation of law. Mukokomani also produced a letter that he said was written by the former town clerk convening a meeting yet he (town clerk) was not entitled.

'Convention of the council meeting is the prerogative of the mayor not the town clerk, DO or PS. So councillor Mbaiwa you lack legitimacy because you were not legitimately voted into office. You are a self-proclaimed mayor because you were voted in an unprocedurally convened meeting. That alone is a defiance of the court order,' Mukokomani said.

He also told Mbaiwa to do himself justice by vacating the mayoral position now or risk facing the law later on.At this point councillor Mponwane requested that the mayor should not chair the proceedings since he had an interest in the issue, but Mbaiwa just laughed it off. The mayor said that he would not step down. Mukokomani and Mponwane were not present when Mbaiwa was elected as they had walked out in protest after arguing that a special council did not have the right to elect the mayor and deputy.