An African proverb says when the elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.
This saying rang true for residents of Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni this week as their needs took a backseat while political parties took on the battle for mayoral seats.
While these contests played out, residents — who are facing the daily struggles of water-cuts, bad road infrastructure, broken traffic lights, all accompanied by Eskom’s load-shedding — are powerless, haplessly waiting out even a hint of service delivery as political games get under way.
On Wednesday, the DA’s Mpho Phalatse, who was booted as Johannesburg mayor last month but reinstated by a court on Tuesday, could not access her office in the city chambers because the locks had been changed.
Whether it be a petty move, or at best an oversight on the part of ANC officials who have had held office for the last month, no-one seems to be sparing a thought for service delivery.
More concerning is that the work which was done by the now unseated mayor of Johannesburg, Dada Morero, over the past four weeks may be undone by Phalatse, who says she is reviewing and overturning some of the decisions taken by Morero in his 25 days in power.
And this skirmish is nowhere near over.
More concerning is that the work which was done by the now unseated mayor of Johannesburg, Dada Morero over the last four weeks may be undone by Phalatse.
In a television interview, newly elected Gauteng premier Panyaza Lesufi indicated that Phalatse’s victory may be short-lived.
While Lesufi reiterated numerous times they “congratulate Phalatse on her reinstatement, respect the rule of law and welcome the court outcomes”, he indicated that the coalition parties who had thrown their weight behind the ANC and booted Phalatse out, still favoured them to lead the metro.
This essentially means Phalatse may hold the mayoral seat just long enough to keep it warm for Morero.
The same musical chairs is unfolding in Ekurhuleni, where on Wednesday, DA mayor Tania Campbell was booted out of the mayoral seat after a vote of no confidence.
A new mayor is expected to be announced in the next few days.
Whether it be a councillor from which ever political parties that takes over, the key is to remember their core jobs. What the residents of these cities need is service, efficiency and stability.
The parties involved in these coalitions need to return to the drawing board and understand that any party that is prepared to serve the people and put the people first is one that will win their confidence.
But so far, what is happening in these Gauteng cities does not bode well for coalition politics in South Africa.
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