DA names candidate

The Democratic Alliance (DA) has announced Funzela Ngobeni as its candidate for the position of executive mayor of the DA-led City of Joburg.

This was after mayor Herman Mashaba resigned from the party last month and his last day will be November 27.

Ngobeni has served as a member of the city’s mayoral committee for finance since January last year as well as being the leader of executive business in the council. He was a long-serving councillor prior to that.

“The DA went through a rigorous selection process before appointing him. The party is confident that should he be elected as the mayor on November 28 he will continue the good work done by outgoing mayor Herman Mashaba by streamlining services to improve all residents’ lives.

“We congratulate Funzela on his election; we trust that he will be elected as executive mayor and we commit our support to him unconditionally in the pursuit of creating One South Africa for All.”

Newly-appointed interim leader of the DA John Steenhuisen said the party would negotiate with the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) in the hope of finding a Johannesburg mayoral candidate both parties could agree on.

“We’ve got a negotiating team that will deal with them,” Steenhuisen told Power FM. “We are committed to ensuring we don’t throw Joburg back to the wolves.”

With just 38% of the vote, the DA has managed to lead a seven-party coalition since the last local government elections in 2016. But this arrangement is now in jeopardy, as an important factor in securing control of the council was the partnership the party struck with the EFF, which voted with the party on a case-by-case basis. While the EFF’s relationship with the DA has soured since 2016, it has remained strong in Johannesburg largely due to Mashaba.

A key metro it helped the DA gain control of, Nelson Mandela Bay, fell to a coalition led by UDM mayor Mongameli Bobani with the help of the EFF, the ANC and one rogue DA councillor. And while the DA has not lost control of Tshwane, the EFF turned against the party there as well, trying unsuccessfully to oust former mayor Solly Msimanga who subsequently left of his own accord.

– Citizen reporters/News24 Wire