Second Karoo municipality back up for grabs as ANC pulls out of coalition with DA

Another hotly contested Western Cape municipality is back up for grabs six months after the local government elections.

Like Beaufort West‚ Kannaland finds itself without a mayor after the ANC pulled out of a coalition with the DA.

ANC provincial secretary Faiez Jacobs said on Wednesday his party had recalled mayor Magdaleen Barry and her deputy‚ Phillipus Antonie.

Antonie is also a ward councillor and his recall means a by-election‚ which may open the way for the DA and the Independent Congress of South Africa to beat the ANC and increase their number of seats in council

• DA faces battle in Beaufort West as mayor quitsThe resignation of Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille as DA Western Cape leader appears to have rattled some sections of the party and it now faces "a serious risk" of losing control of the Beaufort West municipality. 

This comes after DA and ANC councillors defied their leaders and formed a coalition to topple Icosa’s Jeffrey Donson from his position as mayor. Icosa won most seats but did not have an outright majority.

Said Jacobs: “The ANC provincial executive committee found this [coalition] untenable as the ANC and DA are fundamentally in different political corners.

“Today the PEC recalled the mayor and deputy mayor in its attempt to get ANC out of this arrangement. One of the councillors recalled is a ward councillor‚ therefore by-elections will be held within 90 days.”

Last week‚ a similar situation played itself out in Beaufort West when DA mayor Djorge Malooi unexpectedly resigned from his post amid internal power struggles in his party.

The Independent Electoral Commission is yet to set a date for a by-election but his resignation opens the door for the ANC's Truman Prince to make a comeback as mayor if his party wins.

- TMG Digital/The Times