SALDANHA BAY MUNICIPALITY APPOINTS HEINRICH METTLER AS MUNICIPAL MANAGER

During a Council Meeting on 13 September 2022, the Saldanha Bay Municipality Council welcomed the appointment of Mr. Heinrich Mettler as the Municipal Manager for the next five years.

In terms of the Municipal Systems Act, the employment contract for a Municipal Manager must be for a fixed term to a maximum of five years but may not exceed a period of one year after the election of a new Council.

The vacancy was advertised nationally with a total of 28 applications received and two (2) candidates were invited to attend the assessment and interview sessions on 5 September 2022 after a screening and vetting process.

Two (2) interviews were conducted after three (3) candidates withdrew from the interview session. Council resolved on the appointment of Mr. Mettler from 1 November 2022, after considering the report received from the service provider on the recruitment process.

Executive Mayor André Truter wishes to congratulate and welcome back Mr. Mettler in his continuing role as Municipal Manager. “I wish him well in his responsibilities and I know together we will take Saldanha Bay Municipality to even greater heights. We all know the re-appointment of a Municipal Manager indicates stability and progress for Saldanha Bay Municipality,” Truter said.

Mettler has extensive experience in Municipal Management and first joined the Saldanha Bay Municipality on 3 December 2018, following his tenure as Municipal Manager at Prince Albert Municipality.  He holds a Masters in Business Administration (MBA) degree from the Port Elizabeth Technikon, which he achieved in 2003, and a National Diploma in Civil Engineering from the Cape Technikon (Cape Peninsula University of Technology), supplemented by various municipal aligned training as well as vast experience in the public, private and local government sectors.  Mettler is also a board member of the Freeport Saldanha Industrial Development Zone.