ActionSA alleges a lack of proper procurement procedures and a breach of the coalition agreement is at the heart of its decision to oppose the report by its coalition partner in Tshwane, the Democratic Alliance (DA).
The report, which has since been retracted by Mayor Randall Williams, was based on the fact that the City of Tshwane had acquired an alternative authority.
The party responded to the DA’s accusation that its decision was driven by the ego of its leader Herman Mashaba.
The report refers to an unsolicited R26 billion bid from an energy services provider to renovate, finance, operate and maintain the Pretoria West and Royval power stations.
Opposition parties in the city opposed the report, arguing that the process should be open to other companies.
ActionSA Gauteng chair Bongani Baloyi says the DA is using pedestrian politics.
“The tactics of the prosecution to reduce such an important and significant issue of potential corruption of 26 billion rand to the ego of a political party leader is baseless, quite adventurous and quite characteristic. They have to answer why, firstly, the mayor issued an instruction to employees in the city, where there is a record of it, where his chief of administration is also involved – issuing instructions about the procurement process and which service provider should be followed.”
The mayor withdraws the report
Tshwane Mayor Randall Williams has since retracted the report after mounting pressure from other political parties.
Williams presented a report to Council Tuesday seeking public input on leasing the city’s two coal-fired power plants, which have been idle since 2014.
Spokesperson for the City of Tshwane, Sifa Sturman, says they received a proposal from a consortium seeking to convert power plants to use gas as energy.
The city government says this multi-billion dollar project could add an additional 800 megawatts to Tshwane’s grid in the long term.
However, pushback from other political parties forced Williams to withdraw the report.
Actions SA and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) suggested the application was irregular and did not comply with legal requirements.
The EFF has since threatened to pursue criminal charges against Williams.
EFF Tshwane officials led by regional chairman Abakeng Ramabodu and EFF public representatives will file criminal charges against Executive Mayor Randall Williams for exercising undue influence in persuading municipal officials to select an unsolicited bid. pic.twitter.com/7CE8FmplDw
— EFF Tshwane Region (@TshwaneEff) August 16, 2022
ActionSA has since welcomed the retraction of the report, as seen in the tweets below:
We welcome the withdrawal of the unsolicited bid proposal by Tshwane Mayor Randall Williams.
This is a victory for the people of Tshwane and a confirmation of ActionSA’s position that the proposal would be illegal.https://t.co/8fwslWrhHt
— ActionSA (@Action4SA) August 16, 2022
Sustainable electricity is a core commitment of our manifesto proposal, but it should not come at the expense of compliance with the law.
Let’s get back on track and find lasting and legal solutions to the electricity problems facing Tshwane and other cities.
