Brits – The ANC used its majority in the Madibeng local municipality to retain Jostina Mothibe as the mayor and elect Kabelo Ntshabele as the Speaker of council on Thursday.
Mothibe received 46 votes while Eddie Barlow of the Democratic Alliance received 34 votes. Ntshabele received 45 votes while former Madibeng mayor now a DA councillor, Abram Ratlou received 35 votes.
There was jubilation in the public gallery and the overflow area when the results were announced and it emerged that one of the opposition members had voted for Mothibe.
African National Congress members punched the air with their fists to celebrate Mothibe’s return to office.
The DA, as the official opposition, nominated candidates in all the positions even though the opposition collective made of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus), Forum 4 Service Delivery (F4SD) , African Independent Congress (AIC) and Congress of the Peoples (Cope) have 35 votes, one councillor was absent.
The ANC won 45 council seat with 54.4 percent, the DA won 16 seats, EFF 14, F4SD and FF Plus each won two seats, while the African Independent Congress and Congress of the Peoples each won seat each in the recent municipal elections.
Mothibe said she was prepared to work together with other parties to deliver basic services in Madibeng.
“We are in a journey to complete change the face of Madibeng…”
She thanked the electorate for voting for the ANC to take control of Madibeng.
Single Whip of council Boy Makgobo, who was elected by majority votes, called for discipline among councillors.
This was after two councillors from the EFF arrived late for their swearing in and one never made it to the first council meeting.
EFF councillors in their red overalls occupied the seats on the left side of the chamber while ANC councillors dressed in dark suits with white shirts and red ties occupied the right and centre of the chamber.
While the ANC was able to use its majority to retain control of Madibeng, the future was bleak in Rustenburg.
The ANC failed to score an outright majority win in Rustenburg, leaving the municipality to be taken over by the opposition parties. The ANC won 43 seats out of the 89 council seat. The opposition parties together have 46 seats.
African News Agency