For 10 months, Nelson Mandela Bay’s acting CFO, Jackson Ngcelwane, refused to sign his appointment letter as he was earning more in his previous post than the salary attached to the top finance boss job he had long been pursuing. As a budget and financial accounting senior manager for budget and treasury, Ngcelwane was taking home R109,847 more per annum than the maximum package permitted for a category eight municipal CFO — despite holding a lower-ranking position. As a senior director, Ngcelwane’s salary contradicts the R2.39m upper limit for the post stipulated in a May 2024 government gazette.
His appointment would also be permanent and not the usual five-year contract for executive directors. There are 11 other officials in the budget and treasury department earning above the threshold. The council was meant to consider a proposal to waive the prescribed remuneration limits to accommodate his new package.
It is understood that Ngcelwane signed an appointment letter, but not a contract. Ngcelwane wrote a letter in July outlining his grievances with the proposed salary. A majority of the council voted in favour of his appointment during a January council meeting.
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Co-operative governance MEC Zolile Williams confirmed compliance with the decision on March 24. In a confidential report discussed behind closed doors, acting city manager Lonwabo Ngoqo said there had been engagement with Ngcelwane on the offer, with the latest being on July 7 and July 8.
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