IPC irked by Katima mayor’s dismissal of no-confidence vote

The Independent Patriots for Change (IPC) says Katima Mulilo mayor John Ntemwa’s dismissal of a vote of no confidence motion against him without tabling it for discussion is illegal.

The motion against Ntemwa by National Democratic Party councillor Simasiku Mukendwa is based on his alleged incompetence as a leader and was supposed to be tabled for discussion during the council meeting last Tuesday.

Efforts to get comment from Ntemwa were unsuccessful after questions sent to him went unanswered.

IPC councillor Charles Musiyalike, during an interview with The Namibian last week, said instead of Ntemwa recusing himself due to the conflict of interest, he simply dismissed the motion.

He said Ntemwa is in violation of the Local Authorities Act 23 of 1992.

“We did not even have the chance to second the motion. He was not objective at all, as the matter implicated him and as such, he was not supposed to preside over the matter,” said Musiyalike.

He further said he will seek legal guidance from urban and rural development minister Erastus Uutoni.

Mukendwa told The Namibian if Ntemwa were a law-abiding person he would have chosen deputy mayor Lascan Sikosi to chair the meeting and deliberate on the matter.

“Instead, he chose to dismiss the vote of no confidence motion completely. He is acting as if the council is his house and he can do as he pleases. I am really not happy because he failed to comply with the law with his banana leadership,” he said.

Mukendwa’s grounds for a vote of no confidence motion against Ntemwa are that there is a significant lack of trust and confidence in Ntemwa’s ability to effectively lead the Katima Mulilo Town Council.

Furthermore, Ntemwa is allegedly not transparent when it comes to the decision-making processes and fails to communicate effectively with council members.

His inability to address and resolve conflicts within the organisation led to the illegal election of the management committee chairperson, thereby creating a dispute among the committee members, among others.