Johannesburg to get its ninth mayor on Friday
The City of Johannesburg council will elect a new mayor on Friday, 16 August.
Following intense discussions Kabelo Gwamanda who was the city’s first citizen since May 2023 handed in his resignation letter earlier this week.
DADA MORERO TIPPED TO BE THE NEW CITY OF JOHANNESBURG MAYOR
The South African previously reported that African National Congress (ANC) regional chairperson in Johannesburg Dada Morero who replaced the Democratic Alliance’s Mpho Phalatse as mayor in 2022 is set to replace Gwamanda.
This comes as ActionSA placed three key conditions on its conditional support of a new government in the City of Johannesburg.
Additionally, the ANC’s highest-decision making body, the national executive committee (NEC) instructed its national coalition task team to intervene and stabilise municipalities starting in Johannesburg.
The NEC held a three-day meeting and a Lekgotla to deliberate on the party’s dismal performance in the 29 May polls and other issues.
During his address, President Cyril Ramaphosa confirmed that the ANC suffered its major electoral decline in metro municipalities. This has been the case since the 2016 Local Government Elections. Despite this, most of the metros are governed by an ANC-led coalition.
He said the instability, disfunction and poor performance of metros like Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, eThekwini and Buffalo City are clearly reflected in the election results.
“We therefore need decisive interventions in these metros. This is necessary, not simply for the ANC’s electoral prospects but for the sake of engendering inclusive growth, ensuring that there is job creation and that there is poverty reduction. These metros are where millions of our people lie, where most economic activity actually takes place,” he said.
He also confirmed that the first engagement will start in Johannesburg.
“The NEC made an assessment in all hung municipalities and has decided to work with a range of parties to stabilise municipalities across the country. During this month, the national task team on coalitions will be engaging starting in Johannesburg and it will also help to restore, rebuild and renew various structures,” he added.
DO YOU THINK THE NEW JOHANNESBURG MAYOR WILL FINISH HIS TERM?
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