Alderman Zeph Mhlongo
Alderman Zeph Mhlongo (“Njomane”, clan name) was born on 11 March 1964 in Mohlakeng, Randfontein. When the Local Government Transition Act of 1994 was passed, paving the way for the establishment of more representative local government, Zephania Mhlongo heeded the call to serve the people of Randfontein.
In 1994, he was elected as Councillor for the Pre-interim Council and in 1995, he was elected into the Transitional Local Council of Randfontein. He served as Chairperson of the Executive Committee until November 1998 when he was elected as Mayor of Randfontein. He was re-elected as Mayor for the 1999/2000 period.
Before joining Council, Clr Mhlongo was a Teacher from 1987 until January 1996 when he joined the Gauteng Department of Education, District N7 as a Public Relations Officer – a position he held until March 2000.
With the 2000 elections, he was elected as a Ward Councillor and also served as Member of the Mayoral Committee on Finance (Strategy and Budget).
The Mayoral Committee underwent restructuring and during April 2003 he was elected as Executive Mayor for the remainder of the term of office, which ended in 2005. For the period he has served in the Council he was awarded the title of Alderman.
In March 2006, Alderman Zeph Mhlongo was re-elected as Executive Mayor for another period of five years ending in 2011.
The Executive Mayor has built a solid reputation for his zero-tolerance stance on corruption. At the State of the Town Address on 22 March 2007, Mayor Mhlongo committed himself and the new Councillors to working hard to improve the lives of his people especially those living in chronic poverty.
Alderman Mhlongo also made a clarion call for partnerships with businesses, trade unions, Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), Community-Based Organisations (CBOs) and Faith-Based Organisations (FBOs) to help fight underdevelopment in the town.
