Coalition aim solely to defeat ANC
THE feud, going on for almost a year now in Nelson Mandela Bay is a clear signal of the results of a toxic decision taken when other parties decided to enter into coalition with the DA.
There was never any real programme or election manifesto representing all of the coalition parties to this agreement that outlined how the residents of Nelson Mandela Bay would be served.
The coalition was formed to defeat the ANC and that the DA successfully achieved.
Now that it is time to focus on service delivery and the betterment of our people’s lives, we find the administration that promised change has only changed the lives of the poor for the worse.
It is still fighting nine months later over positions and appointments, while the majority of residents of Nelson Mandela Bay are battling with poverty, unemployment and housing.
There are serious allegations of maladministration and impropriety, including allegations of councillor Mongameli Bobani's public behaviour, all of which are being investigated.
Mayor Athol Trollip seems to highlight this to be the primary reason for the chaos within the municipality.
It seems more a lack of leadership experience and leadership style.
Then one must not cease to remember that the Patriotic Alliance’s Marlon Daniels has also recently signed up as a coalition partner in the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality and has been promised by Trollip he will be appointed to Trollip’s mayoral committee.
This then leaves any layman to wonder why the DA is trying to get rid of Bobani, and if this post was not promised to someone else quieter and easier to control.
If the DA will accede to the Patriotic Alliance’s demand is another matter.
This, then again, leaves one to consider the purpose and objective of the coalition partners – nothing else than exploring all avenues to oust the ANC and, second, to create an opportunity for opportunistic individuals seeking only to earn a salary.
The DA strategy will always remain the same, and that is to use people and, in this instance, other political parties through coalitions to protect its interest.
It must be remembered that it is the leader of the Patriotic Alliance, Gayton McKenzie, who propagated how it wanted to save the coloured people from whites who oppressed them before and used them as voting fodder.
That same vote the Patriotic Alliance garnered during the local elections has now been sold to the DA.
There is a famous saying that states “logic is the art of reasoning correctly”.
I am noting this as it is evident to me that the vote of no confidence tabled against Bobani was a vote of no confidence written by the DA, but submitted by the Patriotic Alliance.
The short-sighted leaders of the Patriotic Alliance will experience an awakening the same as the (then) Labour Party and in the same manner fade into oblivion.
This is all an exposè of what has been transpiring in Nelson Mandela Bay for the last nine months and it has become untenable.
The relationship within the administration has now become one of holding onto power and an environment where opportunistic individuals see opportunity.
During the IDP meeting on August 22, the mayoral committee, which included speaker Jonathan Lawack, were found wanting, as community members abandoned the meeting because an outdated and incorrect IDP budget was presented to them.
It was an error publicly acknowledged by the speaker of council.
Nothing is stable within the Nelson Mandela Bay.
This conduct speaks directly of a coalition government, a government with political parties grouped together for the sole reason of defeating the ANC.
There is no common ground or shared ideologies among these coalition parties and because of this, they are bound to fail.
The serious question that needs to be considered is: at whose expense will they fail?
This saga is put squarely in front of Trollip. This reminds me of the song sang by Frank Sinatra, “I did it my way”.
This attitude will cost the DA with its allies dearly in days to come.
Christian Martin, ANC MPL, Bhisho