Zandile Gumede eyes MKP ‘groundwork’ as R320m Durban waste tender fraud trial continues - News24

Former eThekwini mayor Zandile Gumede has been an accused in the R320 million Durban Solid Waste (DSW) tender fraud trial for five years, joining the MK Party (MKP) while subjected to the ANC’s step-aside rule.

A buoyant Gumede walked into court on Monday morning after her new party won outright control of three municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal and 599 council seats across the province’s 44 municipalities.

Speaking to News24 outside the KwaZulu-Natal High Court in Durban on Monday, where the trial against her and 21 others is sitting, Gumede said she was a patient woman and not one to gun for positions, but instead worked hard within a party.

“I did the same in the ANC. Even now I am going to work for communities to ensure that all programmes of the MKP to turn around communities are executed with precision; that’s what is important,” said the MKP’s deputy provincial convenor.

Asked what role she would play in the party following its strong election showing, Gumede said she would be “hands-on” and “on the ground”, likening herself to a volunteer.

“I am going to pick up from where I left off while in the ANC to change people’s lives,” she said.

Gumede said while she was with the ANC and was compelled to step aside from her job as mayor, she started a soup kitchen and was helping pupils who needed uniforms when schools opened, through her charity.

The step-aside rule had been a hindrance to her work, she said.

“I had nowhere to report any challenges with this work, but now that I am in the MKP, a door that was closed to me under the step-aside rule has opened and I can help more people.”

While Gumede was happy about the election results and wards won by the MKP, she said she felt let down by seat allocations affected by the proportional representation (PR) results.

“If it was not for this, we would have an outright majority in the city [of eThekwini], but now we have been backed into a coalition.”

She said she had full confidence in the party’s coalition talks committee formed by party leader Jacob Zuma and steered by his son, first deputy president, Duduzane Zuma.

“With this many councillors being ours, all eyes are on us around the delivery of services to the people.”

Gumede was charged, along with former city manager Sipho Nzuza and other former city officials, with siphoning millions of rands from city coffers by allegedly manipulating supply chain processes to ensure tenders were awarded to four service providers who are also accused in the case.

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