Johannesburg - Floyd Brink is set to come back as the new Johannesburg City Manager after an investigation cleared him of corrupt and rogue dealings concerning procurement processes.
Brink was forced out of the City of Johannesburg after a poor relationship with the DA-led administration and former mayor of Johannesburg, Mpho Phalatse.
Before leaving the municipality, Brink was placed on special leave after allegations of misconduct and flouting of procurement processes in the acquisition of portable hand-held communication devices and CCTV equipment for the Public Safety Department.
Those who were in support of Brink believe that he was being targeted for standing up against the unlawful activities of the Group Forensic Investigation Services (GFIS).
Brink had raised issues with the legality of the employment of former GFIS head, Shadrack Sibiya, who was seen as a DA loyalist by the opposition bloc in the council.
The transactions were allegedly signed off by officials in the city's department of public safety, despite them not having the authority to do so. A forensic report that The Star has seen has cleared Brink of wrongdoing.
It is believed that Brink faced trumped-up charges to prevent his appointment as city manager on a permanent basis. Now The Star has seen a report clearing Brink of any wrongdoing.
"We analysed the sourced evidence and data and refer to these in the summary of evidence where appropriate. We considered the regulatory framework applicable to the evidence and our scope, and we applied these principles to our findings. We reviewed information and documents provided to us," the authors of the report said.
Brink was expected to be back at work on March 1.
The Speaker of the Johannesburg Municipal Council, Colleen Makhubele, said she was horrified by what she described as a plan to dispose of Brink from the city manager’s office. She said those responsible for plotting against Brink should be held responsible.
"From the council sitting of February 22, I have tabled my report on the evidence that shows that the previous mayoral committee obstructed council from approving the appointment of Floyd Brink as the city manager.
“This report invited the council to act in accordance with its legal objectives and to intervene and remedy such obstructive acts. These underhanded tactics involved a manipulation of the recruitment process in favour of a candidate who may have been known and/or highly regarded by the deployment committee and/or powers in the DA," Makhubele said.
Brink told a local news website that he felt vindicated. He stated that he had no ill will towards those who plotted against him, but that the DA administration had been poorly advised.
The Star