Opposition work together for new leaders

Opposition parties in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality in Gqeberha, Eastern Cape, have signed a coalition agreement in a move to oust the ANC-led coalition in the metro.

The agreement was the culmination of almost four months of negotiations to form a new government based on shared values, principles, commitments and priorities, the parties said.

The coalition comprised the Democratic Alliance (DA), African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP), African Independent Congress (AIC), Abantu Integrity Movement (AIM), Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus), Pan Africanist Congress of Azania (PAC) and the United Democratic Movement (UDM).

Should the parties be successful in their bid to remove the ANC from power, this would be the second coalition government in the metro.

Speaking at the signing ceremony yesterday, DA leader John Steenhuisen said the party would nominate Retief Odendaal, Eastern Cape Member of the Provincial Legislature (MPL), as their mayoral candidate.

“The processes for his arrival in the council will obviously be dealt with in the next 48 hours and in time for the first meeting.

“We believe he is a good candidate with the necessary qualifications and experience. And most importantly, he is a team player and I know he is looking forward to working with the partners here,” Steenhuisen said.

There were no clear timeframes when the coalition partners would table their petition for the election of a new government.

Steenhuisen described the ANC-led coalition as corrupt and dysfunctional, saying the metro was in crisis.

The ANC formed a coalition government with smaller parties after last November’s local government elections. The ANC and DA each won 48 seats in council.

ANC councillor Eugene Johnson was elected Nelson Mandela Bay’s mayor after she beat DA Eastern Cape leader Nqaba Bhanga, with 60 votes. Bhanga only received 59 votes after one DA councillor was absent.

While he said the different opposition parties had different political ideologies, Steenhuisen said they had one common ground: wanting to put Nelson Mandela Bay residents first.

“I believe this city and our country have barely scratched the surface of our real potential.

“It is going to be the parties represented at this table, and others who put aside their petty differences, to come together around a shared programme of action and delivery that’s going to fundamentally change SA.”

The DA leader added that he believed coalition governments were the future of SA politics.