Nelson Mandela Bay's Deputy Mayor Gary van Niekerk defends himself on social media over a failed pothole promise, fraud charges and a recent contempt of court conviction, sharing his version of events in his online publication, 'The Truth'.

With a council meeting scheduled for 10 November, when Nelson Mandela Bay Deputy Mayor Gary van Niekerk's future as a city official will almost undoubtedly come under the spotlight again, he continued to share "The Truth" about events in the municipality on social media.

Van Niekerk faces fraud charges and is accused of contravening the Municipal Finance Management Act (MFMA), dating back to 2022, for allegedly racking up legal bills of more than R570,000 without authorisation. He was also convicted of contempt of court for missing a previous court date, and fined R2,000. His trial on the fraud and MFMA-related charges is scheduled for May 2026.

On Friday, in the latest edition of his online "publication", recounting events from two years ago, he claimed to have been misquoted in the media, publicly ambushed by coalition partners, and made to look like a mayor full of empty promises who could not even deliver on an undertaking to fix potholes in Nelson Mandela Bay. Van Niekerk, while now the deputy mayor, previously served as the metro's mayor from May 2023 to October 2024.

"This is not just a story of roadworks, but a candid look at the high-stakes, and often brutal, nature...