The DA’s former budget and treasury MMC in Nelson Mandela Bay Retief Odendaal has called on Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs (Cogta) minister Zweli Mkhize “to put an immediate end to this illegal occupation of City Hall”.

The DA on Friday lodged court papers in Port Elizabeth, asking for an urgent review of what it described as a “coup d’état”, when the ANC, EFF and UDM banded together to remove Athol Trollip as the mayor on Monday.

Former deputy mayor Mongameli Bobani of the UDM was elected mayor.

Councillor Odendaal released a statement on Sunday on behalf of the “NMB coalition”, claiming that the local ANC, UDM and other smaller parties were giving Mkhize the “middle finger” by not meeting with a delegation from Cogta.

“By choosing not to meet with a delegation from the National Department of Cogta, the illegitimate government in NMB is now more isolated, irrelevant and paranoid than ever,” he claimed.

Mkhize has appointed a task team to establish the facts in Nelson Mandela Bay.

Odendaal said: “We support Cogta Minister Dr Zweli Mkhize’s intervention and urge the Minister to put an immediate end to this illegal occupation of City Hall.”

He finished by saying the coalition still recognised Athol Trollip as the “real Executive Mayor of Nelson Mandela Bay”.

“Only the coalition government can take Nelson Mandela Bay forward.”

The DA meanwhile contends in its court papers that the procedure to remove Trollip and council speaker Jonathan Lawack wasn’t in accordance with the Municipal Structures Act.

City manager Johan Mettler had adjourned the meeting following Lawack’s removal, which occured before the motion against Trollip, citing a lack of quorum after the DA caucus walked out.

The appointment therefore of a person designated by the MEC for local government Fikile Xasa, to preside over the election of a new speaker, was not procedural, the DA argued. Mettler was still capable of presiding, as per the municipal structures act.

They have asked for the matter to be dealt with urgently.

The streets of Soweto and other townships in Gauteng were calm following a week of violence and looting of foreign-owned shops, but police presence has been upped to monitor the situation.

Chaotic violence broke out during protests in White City, Soweto on Wednesday afternoon. Rubber bullets and tear gas were fired to disperse crowds in different shops in the suburb.

“Everything is now quiet. We haven’t experienced any violence although we have deployed officers to monitor the areas across townships in Gauteng,” Gauteng Police spokesperson Lungelo Dlamini told News24 on Saturday.

Dlamini said while other foreign-owned shops remained closed, it was back to “business as usual” for other owners in other locations.

The looting and violence had spread to other townships across Gauteng by Wednesday evening.

READ: Government and FAWU condemn attacks on foreign informal traders in Soweto

The rioting and looting resulted in the deaths of four people, police said.

“Those who are taking precautions, have closed their shops,” Dlamini said.

The violence was sparked by allegations that shop owners sold expired food to the public.

Johannesburg’s Public Safety MMC Michael Sun also told News24 on Saturday that while other shops remained closed, as owners feared for their safety, there was intensified deployment from both SAPS and JMPD in the areas.

“The patrols are continuing and we are trying to suppress any potentially violent situations erupting. We have increased our deployment and every day, we have now monitored the situation,” Sun said.

He added that there have been no further reports of violence reported and that they were hoping the situation would remain calm.

On Thursday, the SA Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) said it was concerned about claims of the sale of expired goods. It however said there was no justification for people taking the law into their own hands.

The Department of Trade and Industry has since said an inter-departmental meeting on illicit fake food products in South Africa, which was held in Pretoria on Thursday, has resolved to ensure that there was visible enforcement of all related regulations.

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Proceedings resume. 

Williams says that during the tea break, she received communication, a text message, from Mzwanele Manyi. 

Williams: “Chairperson, I got a text message from Mr Manyi, who is saying that I must say that the TNA breakfasts didn’t happen in his time, and it is my view that he is trying to influence my submission…” 

Zondo thanks Williams for sharing that with the commission. 

The ANC has slammed the DA’s call for President Cyril Ramaphosa to be called to testify at the state capture commission of inquiry.

DA chief Whip John Steenhuisen said in a statement that Ramaphosa and former president Jacob Zuma should be called to testify about their roles.

“Ultimately, the former and current president of the ANC, Jacob Zuma and Cyril Ramaphosa, were in charge of the government the party led during the height of state capture,” Steenhuisen said.

“There can be no holy cows,” he added.

But head of ANC presidency Zizi Kodwa, said the DA’s call for Ramaphosa to the testify was “reckless, irresponsible and undermines the commission”.

“It is irresponsible of everybody and an organisation at this stage to make reckless statements about the testimony in the commission,” he said.

“It’s not for us as the public to begin to analyse the character of witnesses including their testimony,” Kodwa said.

Zuma has a legal team at the commission, but he was yet to formally apply to cross-examine any of the witnesses that have implicated him. The commission is investigating allegations of undue influence by the Guptas on Zuma and his administration.

Zuma was implicated by former ANC MP Vytjie Mentor who told the commission that he was at the Guptas’ Saxonwold mansion when the eldest of the brothers, Ajay, offered her a public enterprises minister job. She said she told him about the offer.

READ: Mentor describes her encounter with Zuma at Gupta’s Saxonwold home

Former deputy finance minister Mcebisi Jonas said Ajay offered him the finance minister job.

Both Jonas and Mentor said Ajay was aware of a pending Cabinet reshuffle and Zuma fired the incumbents in those positions weeks after the job offers were made.

The commission, headed by Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo, is in its fifth day and four witnesses have already been called to testify.

“It has taken an enormous amount of time and work to get to this point and we cannot allow the Zondo commission to leave any stones unturned,” Steenhuisen said.

But Kodwa said it was too early for any conclusions to be reached.

“We are only in the second week of two years of the commission concluding its work. Therefore, we must allow the commission to do its work without fear or favour,” he said.

In its statement, the DA provided a list of former ANC ministers who it believed should also be called to testify.

The list includes former mineral resources minister Mosebenzi Zwane, who allegedly helped the Guptas defraud the Estina dairy project in the Free State, former home affairs minister Malusi Gigaba, who allegedly facilitated the early naturalisation of the Guptas, former finance minister Des van Rooyen, who was appointed when Nhlanhla Nene was allegedly axed for blocking the nuclear build deal, and former SA Revenue Service commissioner Tom Moyane.

Kodwa distanced the party from those who have been implicated.

“If individuals of the ANC are implicated, it does not mean the ANC is implicated…therefore those individuals can be invited to come before it,” he said.