A critical electricity committee meeting in nelson mandela bay collapsed after anc councillors walked out when the acting executive director left early, amid ongoing power outages across the city.
In nelson mandela bay, the electricity and energy standing committee meeting ended abruptly on thursday when anc councillors gamalihleli maqula and luzuko ndamse left after acting executive director bernhardt lamour departed for a prior commitment with mayor babalwa lobishe. The walkout left the committee without quorum, halting discussions on infrastructure issues like transmission line failures and streetlight repairs.
The incident occurred against the backdrop of recent power disruptions, including the collapse of the summerstrand-arlington 132kv line on tuesday, which caused widespread blackouts in gqeberha. Another pylon failure along the chelsea-arlington line has added to the metro's electricity woes.
Committee chair ziyanda mnqokoyi, eff councillor and mmc for electricity and energy, expressed concern over the collapse. “What has happened today is concerning to us as councillors because we are the key to service delivery in our communities,” she said. Mnqokoyi accepted lamour's apology but noted the committee would raise issues with the chief whip.
Maqula defended the walkout, stating lamour's presence was essential as the accounting officer. “The reason being that [he] is an appointed executive director and by implication it means he is the accounting officer of that department,” maqula explained. He claimed this was the second such incident.
Opposition voices criticized the event. Da spokesperson ondela kepe called it “shameful,” reflecting coalition instability, while acdp councillor lance grootboom suggested it avoided scrutiny on maintenance shortcomings. The agenda included reports on street lighting and pylon maintenance, which went undiscussed.
