The executive mayor of the City of Tshwane Randall Williams has resigned ahead of a looming motion of no confidence against him. In a statement on Monday morning, Williams said he was resigning to ensure stability of the multi-party coalition in Tshwane without which service delivery would suffer.

BRINGING STABILITY TO THE CITY

Williams said in the statement that he didn't want the political instability that has taken place in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni to spill over into Tshwane. "To keep the multi-party coalition together required continuous communication and engagement to ensure unity in our city to achieve our goals. I resign today because I believe it is in the best interest for continued stability of the coalition in the city. Being Executive Mayor of the Capital City has not been without its difficulties but I have embraced every challenge that has come my way in the execution of my duties, all of which have allowed my own personal development. I resign today not in frustration, resentment or anger but in peace knowing that I have been given an incredible opportunity and I have fulfilled my duties to the best of my abilities, "Williams said.

MOTION OF NO CONFIDENCE

 In January, the ANC in Tshwane said it was negotiations with other political parties on a possible  motion of no confidence against Williams. The ANC accused Williams of failing to make sure that that the city's finances are in order, after the auditor-general's report flagged over R10 billion in irregular expenditure. The report also pointed out millions of rand that remained unaccounted for. At the beginning of February, the EFF in Tshwane also gave Williams seven to resign or face a motion of no confidence. The EFF's Obakeng Ramabodu said at the time that if Williams refused to resign they were going to shut down all the municipal offices and close strategic roads until he resigned.

POWER STATIONS REVAMP TENDER

Opposition parties in the city have also accused Williams of  not following municipal legislation and trying to force officials to compile a forensic report to push through an unsolicited bid to revamp two power stations. The report that was supplied to Gauteng Treasury said the Kratos consortium would revamp the Pretoria West and Rooiwal power stations to provide clean gas energy. The power stations have not been operational since 2014. Williams said the offer would supply 800 megawatts of electricity and possibly end load shedding in the city. He also claimed the project that needed over R26 billion investment from the city would create more than 300 jobs.

ActionSA, the EFF and ANC said the offer from Kratos was not unusual and could be supplied by other companies.The political parties also said that the offer should be opened for public participation.