Durban - The eThekwini Municipality has warned the public about a fake municipal Facebook account.
In a statement, the municipality said it had reported the fake account to Facebook.
The municipality said the difference between the two accounts was that: “The official city Facebook account has over 355 000 followers and posts information about the municipality and its programme to update residents. The fake account does not feature municipal content and carries trending news.
“While the fake account has the same logo and spelling as the official account, the public is urged to note the spelling of the correct Facebook account which is eThekwini Municipality.”
In February this year, deputy mayor Philani Mavundla warned the public about a fake Facebook account purporting to belong to him and promising people jobs.
The deputy mayor said there was a person on Facebook who goes by the name Philani Mavundla who posted cleaning job opportunities, adding that the person used his name in his profile to look like he was Mavundla, the deputy mayor.
The deputy mayor wrote on his Facebook page, warning people that the account was fake.
“People, please be extra careful. There is a bogus Philani Mavundla on Facebook claiming all sorts of things in my name. This is not my account and I have since notified all city officials including law enforcement agencies to deal with this person and his/her criminal acts. I only have one Facebook account/page that exists and only 1 Instagram account. I would never advertise any city jobs or opportunities through these media platforms - in actual fact, that is not how we operate in the municipality. Please refrain from engaging with this criminal using my name in a dirty manner,” read the deputy mayor’s post.
On Facebook, Mavundla goes by the name councillor PG Mavundla. He uses this page to communicate the work he is doing for eThekwini residents as chair of the human settlements and infrastructure committee.
Daily News