By Zukile Majova and Karabo Rammutla
City of Tshwane council speaker and the sole Cope councillor in the metro, Murunwa Makwarela, has been elected mayor of the country’s capital.
It’s a continuation of the ANC strategy to install “placeholder” mayors in metros. Once the ANC and EFF have agreed on the terms of their future coalition, these mayors are expected to be replaced.
In the Johannesburg metro, the ANC coalition voted Thapelo Amad of Al Jama-ah to be mayor of the country’s economic powerhouse, which has a budget of R87 billion, despite his party garnering less than 1% of the share of the vote.
Makwarela ends seven years of DA rule in the R45 billion metro. During this period, the City of Tshwane had four DA mayors who left the city bankrupt and unable to deliver essential services to residents.
On Tuesday, Makwarela received 112 votes while Brink, from the DA, received 101 votes. The vote was conducted through a secret ballot system.
Just a few days ago, the DA’s Cilliers Brink left his job as a member of parliament and was sworn in as a councillor. He was the DA coalition’s preferred candidate for mayor.
Last week, rumours started circulating amongst councillors that Makwarela had defected to the ANC and EFF coalition.
The DA coalition tried in vain to field a motion of no confidence against Makwarela — who was a councillor speaker.
The city was left without a mayor after the DA’s Randall Williams resigned in mid-February this year.
Williams resigned ahead of an expected motion of no confidence against him. The vote of no confidence was also expected to be conducted through a secret ballot system.
He was expected to lose the motion after members of his own caucus had allegedly lost confidence in him.
DA coalition partners in Tshwane, including the EFF, had long called for Williams to step down.
The DA is haemorrhaging metros. Last month the DA’s Mpho Phalatse was voted out as mayor of Johannesburg. Ekurhuleni’s Tanya Campbell is also expected to be voted out in the near future.
Pictured above: Cope’s Murunwa Makwarela is now the mayor of Tshwane
Image source: @Murunwa-Makwarela
