Tshwane mayor ‘will learn to respect us’, says ActionSA’s Mashaba
Tshwane mayor Cilliers Brink will likely face a motion of no confidence as ActionSA gets into bed with ANC in the metro.
ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba says City of Tshwane mayor from the Democratic Alliance (DA) Cilliers Brink will learn to respect them.
Mashaba’s sentiment comes as his party and the African National Congress (ANC) reportedly consider forming a coalition. The two parties recently partnered in the City of Johannesburg, and this move saw Kabelo Gwamanda from Al Jama-ah removed as executive mayor and ActionSA caucus leader Nobuhle Mthembu elected speaker of the council.
FUTURE OF TSHWANE MAYOR HANGING A BALANCE?
Since the 2016 local government elections, the City of Tshwane has been governed through a multiparty coalition. Since then, there have been five mayors and four were from the DA.
According to reports, Brink will be ousted via a motion of no confidence so that a new mayor can be elected to lead the metro. In order to achieve this, the ActionSA and ANC would have to rope in the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) as the two do not have enough seats to govern on their own.
Speaking to Newzroom Afrika, Brink said Mashaba has made a number of remarks that indicate that the party is considering some kind of a coalition with the ANC.
“We shouldn’t be worried given what our coalition has achieved, given the fact that nobody has withdrawn from the coalition agreement and that there is no outstanding dispute between the coalition parties. However, those statements from ActionSA are concerning,” he said.
Brink said they are concerned the most about the fact that ActionSA would have to rope in the EFF which then raises the spectre of the kind of chaos and mismanagement happening in Johannesburg.
Reacting to Brink’s sentiments, ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said the DA will not prescribe to them who to coalesce with.
POLITICAL PARTIES BACK BRINK
During a media briefing on Wednesday, political parties said they remain committed to the multi-party coalition and backed the Tshwane mayor.
Freedom Front Plus’ Grandi Theunissen said they remain fully committed to the coalition as the party has contributed a lot in the metro.
“We are fully committed to remain here, to keep a stable coalition on its root. The root is to make sure that the service delivery in the city is on course,” he said.
DA spokesperson in Tshwane Kwena Moloto said the local working relationship between the DA, ActionSA, and other coalition partners remains strong.
Moloto said there was no indication from any party that they intended to disrupt this stability.
“Tshwane continues to serve as a beacon of hope for Gauteng residents, demonstrating that local government can be effective. We believe that no party would seek to undermine this stable and prosperous multi-party government only to open the doors for those who crippled Tshwane in the past,” she emphasised.
DO YOU THINK THE TSHWANE MAYOR WILL SURVIVE THE LOOMING NO CONFIDENCE MOTION?
Let us know by clicking on the comment tab below this article or by emailing info@thesouthafrican.com or sending a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1. You can also follow @TheSAnews on X and The South African on Facebook for the latest news.