Whilst the top brass or ‘fat cats’ of the ANC, were busy eating cake at the Laudium Civic Centre, to celebrate mainly the birthday of their Secretary General (SG) Fikile Mbalula, who was certainly the main attraction, and by the way, also celebrating the birthday of Cllr Patel, this past Tuesday, (April 1), at 11am, they seemed to be blinded to the many vagrants hanging around the CBD, who did not even have bread to eat.
The ‘April Fools’ birthday bash, organised by Patel, which sported chanting and dancing, allegedly resulted in some members of the ANC consuming alcohol outside the Civic Centre, while many Muslims living in the area began the Tuesday, observing the spiritual and religious 6 voluntary fasts. Amongst the around 1000 ANC members who attended the ‘April Fools’ celebration, many of whom were ferried by buses and taxis, were the Tshwane Deputy Mayor, Eugene Modise who is also the chair of the ANC Region, together with other ANC MMCs from the Tshwane Council.
The so called ‘April Fools’ bash was attended by ANC members who came mainly from outside Laudium and who sat comfortably in the Council owned Civic Centre, on the new chairs that Patel recently requested local Indian businessman to donate, ‘for the benefit of the community,’ which his ANC comrades have now very much benefitted from. In what seemed to some as ‘buying support’ from ANC members for the forthcoming elections, various gifts were handed out to the ANC members attending the bash, by Patel or his assistants. Some of these gifts were sponsored by locals and in the case of school shoes given out, surprisingly these came from the ANC in the Province, who apparently received these shoes as a donation for those school going kids in need of shoes. The Laudium Sun received a number of complaints from residents who said that Patel used the birthday bash for his own selfish motive, as a stepping stone to be nominated by the ANC to stand again as Councillor in next year’s election. Hence the invite to ANC structures and ANC members living in other parts of the Ward, as besides requiring support from a branch, a candidate wanting to stand for election also requires support from the zone, other branches and the region. It is believed that Patel has also been eyeing a position in Council, such as speaker or even MMC. Sadly many residents from various parts of Laudium/Erasmia, including those from the poorer areas of Laudium, who voted for Patel in the last election, were not invited to the bash, while ANC members, mainly Africans not living in Laudium were invited. Also, it is believed that the Ward 61 branch of the ANC, the Dawood
Essop branch, was not consulted prior about the bash. Nevertheless, the top big guns from the ANC who hold top executive positions in the Tshwane Council, including the Deputy Mayor, who came to the bash in broad daylight, did not seem to notice the poor state of the Civic Centre, or the poor state of the parking lot in the CBD, or the vacant plot in the CBD that has been causing businesses nearby much frustration, or even the poor state of the streets filled with potholes when driving into Laudium.
*It is unknown if Patel has disclosed all monies or items received for his ‘April Fools’ birthday or at any other time while serving as a Councillor and whether the hiring of the Civic Centre and the boardroom for the bash was paid for.
