Patricia de Lille reveals name of new political party: Good

Former Cape Town mayor Patricia de Lille on Sunday revealed the name of her new political party that plans to contest the 2019 elections.

The name of the new party is “Good”.

“Today I am proud to… announce the movement is named Good. The movement’s name and identity is here for all of you to see,” De Lille said in a statement.

“It is a simple and authentic name that says quite boldly what we stand for and that we are here to disrupt politics as usual. It is rallying call to Good South Africans to resuscitate the project of optimism and reconciliation.”

De Lille said she had been encouraged by the response to her call two weeks ago for people to join her in “building a movement that will save our country”.

“Over the past two weeks we have been managing a growing database of South Africans who stepped forward to join our movement for Good.  Thousands have come forward and we now have a steady base from which to grow,” she said.

“Many have also offered financial support for our movement. We now have activists who are working to grow our base of supporters in all nine provinces.”

Good would be guided by values that included trust, trust, equity, solidarity and service, she stated.

De Lille resigned from her position as Cape Town mayor in October after a protracted and turbulent dispute with the DA, her former political home, where she claimed she had been “used and abused”.

She said the party’s policy positions were based around four themes: spatial justice, social justice, economic justice and environmental justice.

Detailed policy positions were being developed around the themes along with the party’s 2019 election manifesto which will be revealed in January 2019. Premier candidates would also be announced then.

“There has been a lot of speculation about the renaming of the Independent Democrats.  This is a new movement and we have commenced the process of registering the movement with the Independent Electoral Commission,” said De Lille.

“To fight elections across the country will require substantial financial support and we will be reaching out to all those who wish to build a Good South Africa to assist us.”