Urgent Call for Suspension and Dismissal of Mr Mbulelo Memani

6 August 2025

Dear Mayor Kamkam,

Urgent Call for Suspension and Dismissal of Mr Mbulelo Memani

On behalf of the Plettenberg Bay Ratepayers’ Association, we express our serious concern regarding the continued employment of Mr Mbulelo Memani as Municipal Manager. His performance in Bitou has, since his re-appointment, confirmed his unsuitability for office through his contempt of court and disregard for law, administrative failures and questionable hiring practices. It also remains to be seen whether the recent payments by Bitou officials on his behalf, are fraudulent.

It is now a matter of public record that in 2024, the ANC-led council paid Mr Memani some R4.2 million of public funds under a “mutual severance” agreement, designed to circumvent ongoing disciplinary proceedings. The DA successfully obtained a court order in October 2024 requiring Mr Memani to repay the funds. Mr Memani failed to comply with the court order for nine months until the council finally moved to attach his assets.

We understand that Mr Chris Mapeyi, the newly appointed CFO and associate of Memani, has recently produced a reconciliation of the repayments. This document requires immediate and independent audit review to verify:

• All payments made and their sources (particularly if any third party acted on Mr Memani’s behalf and  any incentive for doing so);
• The application of interest for the 15 months since he received the funds.
• Show proof of refund from SARS for the withholding;
• Full reimbursement from Memani of council’s costs for legal and recovery expenses.

Beyond the financial misconduct, Mr Memani has left Bitou in a deepening administrative crisis. His appointment of unsuitable personnel, failure to fill key vacancies, and resistance to transparent governance are leading towards a culture of dysfunction. Key indicators of governance decline during Mr Memani’s tenure include:

• Regressing internal and external audit outcomes;
• Escalating irregular and fruitless expenditure, along with unchecked overtime costs;
• Prolonged suspensions of senior staff on full pay and without resolution;
• Inadequate consequence management and a growing backlog of disciplinary cases;
• Chronic under spending on capital budgets until year-end, flagged by National Treasury as a hallmark of poor planning and execution;
• Over R400 million in outstanding municipal debt, with collection levels between 10–40% in some municipal areas;

Of particular concern is the appointment of Mr Chris Mapeyi as CFO.  Mr Mapeyi’s role as CFO of Chris Hani District Municipality, the only previous experience he has as a municipal CFO, was marked by poor financial governance and management, as confirmed by Auditor-General reports and the financial outcomes during his 3 year tenure. His appointment was pushed strongly by Mr Memani through two recruitment rounds over the past 2 years.  His poor track record as a municipal CFO and his demonstrated allegiance suggests he is not fit for the Acting MM role during what is likely to be a difficult and critical transition period for your office and Bitou. To restore trust and legal governance in Bitou, we urge you, the Council, and relevant oversight bodies to:

1. Pursue the suspension process of Mr Memani with urgency;
2. Initiate an independent investigation into all senior appointments, major tenders, and related financial transactions under his watch;
3. Ensure full recovery of all unlawfully disbursed funds, including interest;
4. Begin a process of restoring transparent, accountable, and professional governance in Bitou.
5. Review hiring practices and include credible 3rd party individuals on the recruitment panel to judge experience and competence.

We support your recent steps to hold Mr Memani accountable and encourage you to proceed decisively with his suspension process.

Bitou deserves principled and competent leadership.

I look forward to your proposed meeting dates, as requested on July 16.

Yours sincerely,

Steve Pattinson