ActionSA lays bribery charges, alleges vote-buying in Tshwane

ActionSA has opened a case of bribery against two individuals the party alleges were sent by the Defence of People (DoP) party to bribe an ActionSA councillor to vote for the ANC-led opposition.

ActionSA national chair Michael Beaumont said they believe that ahead of the vote for the new Tshwane mayor in February, their councillor was approached to vote in favour of ANC-aligned candidate Murunwa Makwarela and was promised money equivalent to his annual salary until 2026 — about  R2m. 

“Given that it has emerged that Dr Makwarela appears to have falsified documents to unlawfully remain in office, we are not surprised that inducements are alleged to have been offered to install him as executive mayor in the first place,” said Beaumont.

ActionSA PR councillor and former human settlements MMC Kgosietsile Kgosiemang said he was approached by a DoP councillor at a shisanyama (restaurant) in Centurion and offered more than R1m to defy the DA multiparty caucus decision to back Cilliers Brink and instead vote for Makwarela.

“Two people were sent to me by one of the councillors in the city. The reward was quite lucrative. They said they could give the salary equivalent until the end of the term. The estimate of that is more than a million rand, or way more. I'm not sure if it was in cash.

“I thought they were bluffing, and that's when they made a call to the councillor and told him they had briefed me, but I didn't really believe it. The councillor on the other end of the phone confirmed. I told them I would toe the party line and would not entertain any of this. They told me to sleep on it and they'd call me. The phone call never came,” said Kgosiemang. 

PODCAST | Michael alleges R2m Tshwane vote ‘bribe’ and tackles Bongani Baloyi’s ‘lies’

Beaumont said it was clear why this would not be tolerated, saying the DA-led multiparty coalition was given a majority by the people of Tshwane and that it was being undermined.

“It is being undermined by individuals who are buying and selling their votes in council, [as if] we are talking about shares on the stock exchange. 

“The councillor from DoP did not act alone. I don't think the party has R2m available. The idea that smaller parties are acting independently in a vacuum is not credible. There is a group of political parties involved in a coup and unseating a government that has a majority in Tshwane ... they are buying their way to a majority through their ill-gotten processes,” said Beaumont.

Beaumont said as a party committed to the rule of law, ActionSA was resolute in its belief that it would not allow the will of the people to be circumvented by corrupt elements in Tshwane.

He urged the police to investigate in an effort to restore confidence and law and order in South Africa’s capital.

“ActionSA strongly condemns any attempts to offer illegal inducements to circumvent the democratic work of council after Tshwane’s residents gave the multiparty government a majority in the city.

“We remain committed to the rule of law and will not allow ANC-aligned political parties to usurp democracy to gain access to lucrative tenders in Tshwane,” said Beaumont.