THE Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) and the provincial secretary of the African National Congress (ANC) in KZN, Bheki Mtolo, are at loggerheads.
The IFP has challenged Mtolo to provide evidence of all the allegations he has levelled against all IFP-led municipalities, including the City of uMhlathuze. During the ANC media briefing that Mtolo chaired, he accused both King Cetshwayo and the City of uMhlathuze of corruption.
He alleged that millions of taxpayers' money had been misappropriated in IFP-controlled municipalities, including King Cetshwayo.
"Senior leaders will be arrested as Cogta, SIU and the police are investigating," Mtolo said.
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On Friday 3 November, the IFP held a press conference at the party headquarters in Durban to brief the media on various critical issues in the province.
The briefing was chaired by IFP provincial chairman Thami Ntuli, who didn't hesitate to call on Mtolo to provide evidence of all allegations against IFP-led municipalities.
"It appears that the ANC provincial secretary, Mtolo, even dreams about the IFP in his sleep, the way he is obsessed about it. He goes as far as blatantly spreading false propaganda about the IFP and our well-administered municipalities, making a mockery of himself," he said.
Ntuli said that in the recent media conference chaired by Mtolo, he made an unfounded allegation that workers and employees of the IFP-run uMhlathuze town had not received their salaries in October.
"This allegation is baseless because uMhlathuze employees received their salaries in full on the 25th of October without any complications.
"Our mayor, Xolani Ngwezi, has publicly challenged Mtolo to provide evidence to support his allegations. However, Mtolo has since disappeared as his fabrications and propaganda have been exposed,” said Ntuli.
He said the undeniable truth is that two of the three municipalities in this province that received a clean audit are run by the IFP: King Cetshwayo District Municipality, City of uMhlathuze and the third is Ukhahlamba Municipality.
"Not a single ANC-administered municipality has received a clean audit. Mtolo seems unaware of this fact and his fantasies continue to cloud his judgement.
"His criticism of the events that boost local economic development and ensure the growth of the tourism industry while ensuring that our artists receive support to feed their families shows that he doesn't understand the solution to the current economic crisis," he said.
