IFP supporters celebrate ahead of Nquthu by-election announcement

25 May 2017 - 12:30 By TMG Digital/TimesLIVE
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Jubilant IFP supporters celebrate their victory ahead of the official results announcement on May 25, 2017 in Nquthu, KwaZulu-Natal.
Jubilant IFP supporters celebrate their victory ahead of the official results announcement on May 25, 2017 in Nquthu, KwaZulu-Natal.
Image: THULI DLAMINI

Boisterous Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) supporters on Thursday morning carried a coffin draped in ANC and National Freedom Party (NFP) t-shirts as they stormed the Nquthu municipal offices, singing "owethu lomaspala, owani lombango [this is our municipality, what's this fuss all about].

Outside supporters celebrated by hooting, revving their car engines and drifting with screeching tyres as ANC supporters looked on in total disbelief.

  • It is official - the Inkatha Freedom Party has captured NquthuThe ANC and the NFP are the biggest losers in the Nquthu by-elections‚ losing three seats and one seat respectively in comparison to what they attained in last year's local government elections before the troubled council was dissolved. 

The IFP claimed early successes in Nquthu‚ with reports of a landslide victory in a number of voting districts after by-elections at the dissolved northern KwaZulu-Natal municipality.

THULI DLAMINI

Jubilant IFP supporters celebrate their victory on May 25, 2017 in Nquthu, KwaZulu-Natal.  Image: Thuli Dlamini

By 10am the IFP had about 15 of the 17 wards in the bag following Wednesday's poll.

The IEC will hold a press briefing to announce official results.

A win by the IFP would signal a comeback for the party‚ which lost the municipality in 2011 at the hands of a fractious ANC/NFP coalition.

IFP national chairperson Blessed Gwala said: "Today should be a public holiday in South Africa."

The IFP now looks set to control the uMzinyathi District Municipality.

This is a developing story.

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