THE ANC in Gauteng has lost another one of its smallest municipalities – Mogale City Local Municipality in Krugersdorp – to the DA.
The dramatic outcome happened yesterday after the DA managed to secure the mayoral position, while the ANC secured other key posts such as Speaker and chief whip after one of the opposition members mysteriously and controversially voted for the former governing party.
The outcome of these elections show that one of the opposition party members had defied the coalition mandate of the DA, EFF, Freedom Front Plus and IFP to vote against any of the ANC candidates.
As a result of the outcome of the August 3 municipal elections, opposition parties concluded an agreement on Tuesday that all opposition parties who secured 39 seats in total would vote as a collective and against the ANC.
However, it was not to be as the ANC managed to secure 39 votes for the position of Speaker, while the DA candidate secured 38 votes.
But during the mayoral candidate nomination, the DA’s Lynn Pannall secured 39 votes ahead of the ANC's mayoral candidate, Peace Mabe, who lost by one vote.
Now the DA has vowed to sit down with their coalition partners to review the outcome.
This then brings Mogale City Local Municipality – the second of the seven smaller municipalities after Midvaal local Municipality in Meyerton in the Vaal – under the control of the DA.
Gauteng DA leader John Moodey also welcomed the outcome of the Mogale vote.
Meanwhile, the DA has also vowed to go ahead with the nomination of its mayoral candidate for Johannesburg, Herman Mashaba, when the City of Johannesburg convenes its inaugural council meeting on Monday.
The insistence on Mashaba came amid the objection of the EFF to his candidacy.
However, EFF leader Julius Malema has appeared to have backed off recently.