Jordaan is expected to be ANC game-changer
THE APPOINTMENT of South African Football Association boss Danny Jordaan as the Nelson Mandela Bay mayor is an indication that the ANC is concerned about losing one of its big metros.
The party hopes that Jordaan could be a game-changer who could end its floundering support in the municipality before next year’s crucial local government elections.
This was the view of political analyst Somadoda Fikeni yesterday, after the ANC announced one of its biggest shake-ups at local government level.
Jordaan’s appointment makes him the fourth mayor in six years in a municipality beset by factionalism and infighting.
In 2009, Nondumiso Maphazi was fired as Mandela Bay mayor and replaced by Zanoxolo Wayile, who in turn was fired in 2013 and replaced by 82-year-old Ben Fihla.
The shifts have hampered service delivery.
The ANC’s decision could be construed as a calculated move to thwart attempts by opposition parties, notably the DA, from wresting Nelson Mandela Bay from the ANC.
ANC secretary-general Gwede Mantashe reportedly said when he announced the changes yesterday, that deputy mayor Chippa Ngcolomba would make way for former deputy mayor Bicks Ndoni.
Chief whip Joyce Searle was axed in favour of Litha Suka, while Speaker Maria Hermans was retained in her position.
Jordaan replaces Fihla.
Mantashe said the outgoing councillors would have to vacate their positions before their substitutes could be sworn in.
Fikeni said the changes were an acknowledgment by the ANC that it was in danger of losing Nelson Mandela Bay.
“The metro has reached a critical stage of factionalism and poor performance over a long period of time. The ANC is gravely concerned about the metro and the war talk from the opposition (DA),” Fikeni said.
He said the ANC’s support had been curtailed in the municipality in the recent elections.
“They have a reason to worry because in the last election, the ANC didn’t do that well.
“It lost a lot of ground in the Gauteng metros and also could not reach the 50 percent mark in the Nelson Mandela Bay metro.”
Fikeni said the ANC faced a threat from metalworkers union, Numsa, and to some extent, Cope, in addition to the DA.
“Many things have since happened, from the ANC being fragmented leading up to Polokwane. Therefore, Cope could find its base there, which is also a base for Numsa, which is drifting away to another direction from the ANC.”
The ANC narrowly managed to cling to the municipality in the 2011 local elections, securing 51.9 percent of the vote – down from 66.5 percent in 2006.
Fikeni said Jordaan’s appointment as the mayor could swing things in the ANC’s favour.
“He is an internationally and nationally recognised person and a consummate administrator and organiser who brings that wealth of experience. But most importantly, he also has an appeal in a wide cross-section of the population, the business sector as well as the minorities, which is an area where the ANC was struggling.”
Jordaan’s appointment is a culmination of intense lobbying, as reported by the Mail & Guardian on Friday.
Jordaan was the 2010 Fifa world cup local organising committee chief executive and was appointed adviser to Confederation of African Football President Issa Hayatou in July 2013. He chaired the ANC in Port Elizabeth and served as an MP between 1994 and 1997.
The metro has reached a critical stage of factionalism