Durban — After many requests for caucuses by various parties, Cyril Vusumuzi Xaba was elected unopposed as the new eThekwini Municipality mayor.
Xaba was nominated by acting mayor Zandile Myeni, an NFP member and seconded by the Nkosenhle Madlala from the ANC.
ActionSA’s Zwakele Mncwango nominated the DA’s Thabani Mthethwa but Mthethwa declined the nomination, saying he had not been consulted by Mncwango. Xaba replaced former mayor Mxolisi Kaunda, who was redeployed to the National Assembly after the May 29 elections.
Xaba’s election was attended by former police minister Bheki Cele, who was also touted for the position. Cele’s name was said to be among those who were proposed by the ANC in KwaZulu-Natal.
Last month, the election of the mayor was postponed after council speaker Thabani Nyawose cited the absence of the Electoral Commission of South Africa as the reason why the item of electing mayor would no longer be tabled. It was expected that former MP Cyril Xaba was set to step in as the new mayor.
After Kaunda’s removal, Xaba’s name cropped up as the front runner to replace Kaunda. The names of Cele and former KwaZulu-Natal premier Nomusa Dube-Ncube were thrown into the hat, but Xaba was preferred by the ANC’s national leadership, which makes the final decision on appointing metro mayors.
Xaba was a member of the provincial legislature from 1994 to 2014 and served as the agriculture and rural development MEC. He did not last in the post after his faction under Senzo Mchunu was defeated by the then pro-Jacob Zuma faction that was led by Sihle Zikalala the following year.
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