Congress of the People (Cope) councillor Murunwa Makwarela is back in office as the mayor of Tshwane after proving that he is a rehabilitated insolvent.

Makwarela provided a clearance certificate, which Tshwane city manager Johann Mettler and the Electoral Commission of South Africa (IEC) accepted.

On Tuesday, the mayor was disqualified as a councillor after being unable to prove to the council that he was rehabilitated following his sequestration. He was declared insolvent in August 2016.

The law prohibits people who are sequestrated from holding public office.

Makwarela was elected as a PR councillor for Cope despite his sequestration.

Later, he held the Tshwane speaker position, and on 28 February, he was elected mayor.

The Democratic Alliance reported his sequestration to the city manager, who asked Makwarela to produce proof that he had been rehabilitated. He was given until Tuesday at 10:00.

Makwarela could not immediately produce proof and asked for an extension, which the city manager could not immediately fulfil.

On Thursday, he submitted a solvency clearance certificate, which showed he was rehabilitated in 2018.

His full mayoral benefits have been instated.

Tshwane head of communication Selby Bokaba said in a statement on Thursday, "The city manager of Tshwane, Johann Mettler, has received a notice of solvency rehabilitation from councillor Murunwa Makwarela this morning (Thursday). He has subsequently informed the Gauteng Provincial Electoral Officer of the Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) to immediately withdraw the declaration of a vacancy for the Congress of the People (Cope) proportional representative (PR) councillor."

"The IEC has confirmed receipt of a letter from the city manager for the withdrawal of the vacancy declaration and undertook to process it accordingly, as they are still within the 21-day time limit. Accordingly, all the benefits and perks accorded to Dr Makwarela as the executive mayor of the City of Tshwane have been reinstated," Bokaba added.

After Makwarela's reinstatement, the Tshwane metro still faces challenges, including passing an adjustment budget.

Earlier, the metro asked National Treasury for an extension until 31 March. But a speaker needs to be elected before the budget can be passed.

A political firestorm like the one preceding and following Makwarela's election is likely to play out with the speaker's election on Monday.