Jolidee Matongo, a son of a Zimbabwean who migrated to South Africa several years ago has been named the new Johannesburg executive mayor after a special meeting to fill the post left vacant by Geoff Makhubo, who succumbed to COVID-19 complications.
Matongo was elected after receiving more than 260 council votes on Tuesday and remained uncontested, a rare occurrence in the city.
Matongo was the metro’s finance committee membersince 2019.
Accepting the nomination, Matongo said: “I Jolidee Matongo, the son of the late Edward Matongo, a migrant from Zimbabwe do hereby accept the nomination for the position of executive mayor of our city…”
Matongo vowed to hit the ground running to ensure better lives for the residents of Johannesburg working alongside different political parties.
He said: “We hope we will all pull together as political parties in the best interests of our residents because ours is to serve the people of Johannesburg, put aside our political bickering and differences and put ahead the interest of the people of Johannesburg.
“We must make sure the daily lived experiences of the people of Johannesburg are improved.”
ANC regional spokesperson Dada Morero said Matongo had served the ANC and the city selflessly for many years.
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Matongo is said to hold qualifications including a diploma in public management, a postgraduate degree in public management from Unisa and a postgraduate diploma in management from Milpark Business School.
He is pursuing his master’s degree in public management with MANCOSA.
Meanwhile, some sections of the South African population yesterday launched a blackmail campaign against Matongo, saying since no South African had held a political office in a foreign land, they would not allow him to superintend over their affairs.
Some described Matongo as an illegal immigrant despite overwhelming evidence that he was born and raised in South Africa. — SowetanLive
