In yet another episode of our political opponents pushing ahead with their disinformation campaign, they have now gone to the Independent Electoral Commission to, in simple terms, waste their time to launch an inquiry into my participation as a Councillor, Member of the Mayoral Committee (MMC) and Leader of Executive Business in the Johannesburg Council. They purport that I, Leah Ruth Knott (née Potgieter), am functioning in the City under false pretenses.
This is not the first time that our power-hungry political opponents have raised this non-issue, but their disinformation campaign is clearly failing so they have sought to resuscitate this old matter.
In the interest of full disclosure and to put this matter to bed, I will play open cards and delve into my personal life. In 2016 I filed for divorce, which was finalised by the High Court in 2017. Despite this, I elected to keep the surname Knott, as this is the surname that my children hold. Furthermore, the Department of Home Affairs (DHA) misplaced my marriage certificate, so the surname Knott was not properly registered with them, therefore as it stands, I am recorded as Leah Ruth Potgieter on the Population Register. My ID number remains the same.
This is the story of many women, who either have their surnames automatically changed by the DHA when they married or struggle to revert back to their maiden name once divorced.
It must be further expressed that in the matter of the Field-Band Foundation, which dates back to the time that the Executive Mayor, Cllr Mpho Phalatse, served as the MMC for Health and Social Development, is without basis nor is it linked to the Executive Mayor.
The Executive Mayor was never a person of interest nor was she under any investigation; to suggest otherwise would be a deliberate deviation from the truth. The matter is currently before the courts and will be ventilated there.
Now, not understanding the difference between oversight and interference, and not fully grasping the complexities of governance, despite having previously been in government, our political opponents, and peddlers of disinformation, are seeking to paint the MMC for Economic Development, Cllr Nkuli Mbundu, as someone who interfered in supply chain management processes. This is another deliberate lie.
The various claims being made must be seen in the context of the Multi-Party Government of Johannesburg being very deliberate about finalising cases of corruption in the City and cutting all lines that were created to direct service delivery funds to the bank accounts and back pockets of liars and looters both inside and outside of the government.
There are organised syndicates operating in the City, which we are homing in on and disrupting their activities. The investigation and subsequent reports into State Capture paint a vivid picture of the type of corruption that had become commonplace in all spheres of government, including in the City of Johannesburg. We will not allow the capture of Joburg.
It must also be stated unequivocally that, since the false and malicious allegations against MMC Mbundu first arose, he has fully complied with the City’s governance processes. As a matter of fact, this issue has been sent to the Ethics Committee for handling – a committee on which all political parties represented in Council sit, including the ANC and its allies.
Additionally, months after the ANC purports to have laid charges against MMC Mbundu, there is not a single law enforcement agency that has contacted him or his Office seeking to either take a witness statement or interview him. That, on its own, should tell residents of not only the paucity of the allegations but also the extent to which our political opponents are prepared to abuse state resources to further their nefarious goals.
The antics of our political opponents have nothing to do with the performance of the Multi-Party Government, nor does it have anything to do with the interests of the City’s residents. This, bluntly put, is an attempt to capture and rob the City of its resources, and subsequently collapse it.
The Joburg Multi-Party Government is working in service of the residents, while our opponents aimlessly run from pillar to post spewing a false narrative, that reveals their real motives with every utterance and press release.
Again, the Multi-Party Government would like to assure the residents of Joburg that service delivery and governance is continuing through the Offices of the MMC, the Core Administration, Entities, Departments and Council.
ENDS
For media queries, please contact:
Mabine Seabe
Director: Mayoral Communication
Private Office of the Executive Mayor
084 677 7851
McKinnley Mitchell
Deputy Director: Communication and Stakeholder Relations
Office of the MMC for Group Corporate and Shared Services
078 800 3047
Mmatshepo Oganne
Deputy Director: Communication and Stakeholder Relations
Office of the MMC for Economic Development
083 253 3404
07/09/2022
