| (a) | A municipal council, after consultation with the municipal manager, must appoint— |
| (i) | a manager directly accountable to the municipal manager; or |
| (ii) | an acting manager directly accountable to the municipal manager under circumstances and for a period as prescribed. |
| (b) | A person appointed in terms of paragraph (a)(i) must at least have the skills, expertise, competencies and qualifications as prescribed. |
| (c) | A person appointed in terms of paragraph (a)(ii) may not be appointed to act for a period that exceeds three months: Provided that a municipal council may, in special circumstances and on good cause shown, apply in writing to the MEC for local government to extend the period of appointment contemplated in paragraph (a), for a further period that does not exceed three months. |
| (2) | A decision to appoint a person referred to in subsection (1)(a)(ii), and any contract concluded between the municipal council and that person in consequence of the decision, is null and void if— |
| (a) | the person appointed does not have the prescribed skills, expertise, competencies or qualifications; or |
| (b) | the appointment was otherwise made in contravention of this Act, unless the Minister, in terms of subsection (6), has waived any of the requirements listed in subsection (1)(b). |
| (3) | If a post referred to in subsection (1)(a)(i) becomes vacant, the municipal council must— |
| (a) | advertise the post nationally to attract a pool of candidates nationwide; and |
| (b) | select from the pool of candidates a suitable person who complies with the prescribed requirements for appointment to the post. |
| (4) | The municipal council must re-advertise the post if there is no suitable candidate who complies with the prescribed requirements. |
| (a) | The municipal council must, within 14 days of the date of appointment, inform the MEC for local government of the appointment process and outcome, as may be prescribed. |
| (b) | The MEC for local government must, within 14 days of receipt of the information referred to in paragraph (a), submit a copy thereof to the Minister. |
| (6) | If a person is appointed to a post referred to in subsection (1)(a) in contravention of this Act, the MEC for local government must, within 14 days of becoming aware of such appointment, take appropriate steps to enforce compliance by the municipal council with this Act, which steps may include an application to a court for a declaratory order on the validity of the appointment or any other legal action against the municipal council. |
| (7) | A municipal council may, in special circumstances and on good cause shown, apply in writing to the Minister to waive any of the requirements listed in subsection (1)(b) if it is unable to attract suitable candidates. |
| (8) | A person appointed in a permanent capacity as a manager directly accountable to the municipal manager when this section takes effect, must be regarded as having been appointed in accordance with this section. |
| (9) | A person appointed as an acting manager directly accountable to the municipal manager when this section takes effect, must be regarded as having been appointed in accordance with this section only for the period of the acting appointment. |
| (10) | Any pending legal or disciplinary action in connection with an appointment made before this section took effect, will not be affected by this section after it took effect. |
[Section 56 substituted by section 3 of Local Government-Municipal Systems Amendment Act, 2022 (Act No. 3 of 2022) by Notice No. 1233, GG46740, dated 17 August 2022]
