MHRF poll achievement a game changer of note
The Middelburg and Hendrina Residents Front has achieved what very few startup political parties ever would, making history with scoring no less than seven proportional council seats in Monday's local government elections, despite an ongoing pandemic and lockdown.
The MHRF stripped the ANC of seven seats, resulting in a hung council.
The ANC also forfeited a seat to the FF+ and three to the EFF during Monday’s poll. MHRF chairman, Ben Mokoena, is one of two former Steve Tshwete ANC mayors to contest the election against the ANC.
Like independent candidate and former Hendrina mayor and Steve Tshwete council speaker, Thomas Mpye, who won Kwazamokuhle’s Ward 2 council seat, Mokoena’s MHRF also gave his former party a lashing at the poll on the PR ticket, with the ANC only managing 21 ward wins and zero PR seats.
What makes MHRF’s achievement even more remarkable, is the fact that former ANC councillor and member of ousted mayors Manthlakeng Mahlangu and Mike Masina’s mayoral committees, Rehana Pilodia, also made it back to council on the MHRF ticket.
She will be joining Mr Mokoena alongside Mr Jomo Segage, Mr Thato Mathunyane, Ms Cindy Mashabela, Ms Dorcus Mokoena and Mr Ntate Motla, to be sworn in as councillors once the first sitting is called.
The sitting must be called within 14 days of the official release of the results by the IEC. The IEC is yet to declare the elections, with results still outstanding in some Freestate voting districts.
The MHRF scored 11.9% of votes, trailing the EFF with 14.93%, the DA with 28.37% and the ANC at a historically low 36.85%.
Ms Pilodia celebrates her birthday today, telling www.mobserver.co.za, that she could not want for a better gift than to return to council.
