The ANC-controlled Great Kei Municipality council is backing an opposition call to hold its former mayor, municipal manager and chief financial officer responsible for legal costs emanating from land deals that were scuppered.

In a proposal to council last week, DA councillor Will Hollington asked that former mayor and speaker Miranda Kema, municipal manager Oxley Ngqele and chief financial officer Zoli Gwavu be sued for the legal costs incurred in land deals by the council that went sour.

Hollington yesterday said the costs included a R500 000 overdraft the municipality negotiated to repay Kei Mouth businessman Willie Labuschagne.

The money was part of about R1.5 million the council owed him in terms of an order by the Grahamstown High Court.

The Daily Dispatch earlier reported that acting judge Pieter van der Bijl ordered the municipality to repay Labuschagne the money which he had paid for 11 erven ? a deal that was later described as irregular by the provincial Auditor-General's 2006 report.

Van der Bijl also awarded Labuschagne costs.

The municipality was involved in further legal disputes with Labuschagne and the Bahlodi Housing group, whose plans to build a golfing estate on municipal land have been criticised by the A-G.

The A-G found that Ngqele, who had concluded the deals, did not have council's authority to do so.

In a letter to attorney Mark Nettelton, who represented Labuschagne, the municipality's attorneys, Gravett Schoeman Van Rensburg & Moodley, offered Labuschagne payment of the R500 000 until such time it had sold eight Morgan Bay properties.

The attorneys said its clients did not have the funds to immediately pay Labuschagne the full amount.

Despite the R500 000 repayment, Labuschagne's attorneys asked the high court sheriff to implement the court order and attach furniture at the new municipal offices in Komgha.

Hollington said yesterday that the full council supported his proposal.

Ngqele's successor, newly-appointed municipal manager Andile Sihlahla, will be asked to report back to council on the progress of the steps to be taken.

ANC councillor Wellington Tekile would not comment on the matter yesterday.

Meanwhile, DA MPL Bobby Stevenson called on the Local Government MEC to urgently intervene in what he called the Great Kei Municipality "financial collapse".

"There has been an endless plethora of financial problems and gross mismanagement besetting this municipality, stemming largely from the disastrous property deal which occurred as a result of Great Kei issuing tenders to more than one tender applicant for the same stretch of property ?"

Kema, Ngqele and Gwavu were not available for comment.