DA and ActionSA at loggerheads over mayoral candidate for Joburg

Former coalition partners the DA and ActionSA are at loggerheads over a mayoral candidate for Johannesburg.

A new mayor is scheduled to be elected at a council meeting taking place on Tuesday morning.

This follows the abrupt resignation of former mayor Thapelo Amad, who was facing a motion of no confidence against him last week which was withdrawn after he stepped down.

The DA announced last week it would nominate former mayor Dr Mpho Phalatse as its candidate, saying she had a proven track record and understood the needs of the people of Johannesburg.

But in a sudden turn of events, ActionSA has announced its Gauteng chairperson and Joburg caucus leader Funzi Ngobeni will contest against Phalatse for the position.

ActionSA said the former coalition partners have had engagements with the IFP, FF Plus, ACDP and the UIM to determine the viability of rallying around a mayoral candidate that can stabilise governance for the benefit of all residents in Johannesburg.

ActionSA chairperson Michael Beaumont said parties have engaged in this process because of their commitment to governance stability, service delivery and combating corruption — all of which cannot succeed with the ANC and EFF in government.

“Ngobeni will be nominated as the candidate to be supported by these parties. We express our humble appreciation to our partners for their confidence. There have also been engagements with other parties represented in the Johannesburg council, many of whom see the merit in a coalition that is led by a party other than the ANC or the DA,” said Beaumont.

On Monday, ActionSA wrote to the DA on behalf of the coalition partners requesting an urgent meeting to seek its support for Ngobeni’s candidature.

“The case was made for the fact that Ngobeni could achieve a majority in council with the support of the DA, something that Phalatse cannot achieve (even with our collective support) because of the breakdown of relationships between the DA and other parties in council,” said Beaumont.

However, the DA rejected a meeting and is sticking with its unilateral nomination of Phalatse, which ActionSA believes will increase the likelihood of an ANC and EFF government in Johannesburg.

ActionSA said despite this deadlock, it was proud to stand among parties that have proved their unequivocal commitment to providing an alternative to the ANC and EFF in Johannesburg.

The former coalition partners said complex challenges faced by cities like Johannesburg cannot be fixed in the opposition benches and this is why they have taken the decision to work together to wrest power from the ANC/EFF and minority voting bloc.

“Ngobeni, especially given recent coalition history, has proven to be a leader with the temperament to stabilise a coalition and this is undoubtedly a key consideration in the support of our partners,” said Beaumont.

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