Parties aim to take power from ANC in by-elections amid disagreements

Fifteen political parties and two independent candidates set to take part in the upcoming by-elections in Ditsobotla local municipality are vying to take it from the hands of the ANC.

This after a decision by the provincial and national governments to dissolve the municipality due to unending internal wranglings.

Seats

The North West municipality had two mayors, two speakers, and two municipal managers from two ANC groupings. The ANC had 21 council seats while the opposition combined had 18.

Parties such as Forum For Democrats and United Christian Democratic Party (UCDP) did not contest in the last year’s local government elections in Ditsobotla, hence they regard this as a blessing in disguise.

Lucas Mokgosi, the provincial chair of the UCDP, which was formed by the late Bophuthatswana leader Lucas Mangope, was adamant they will do better in this election.

“We are more than prepared to [take] the bulls by their horns. We are not afraid of the ANC, the [Economic Freedom Fighters] is promising to do better than any of us but we will have a slice of the pie,” he said.

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‘Blessing in disguise’

“This by-election, to us, is a blessing in disguise because we did not manage to contest in the previous elections…”

ActionSA, which did not take part in the 2021 polls, will not be taking part in this highly contested election. In a statement last week, the party said: “ActionSA senate has taken a decision not to take part and contest the upcoming by-election in Ditsobotla.

“We deliberated at length on the state of affairs in Ditsobotla and North West province as a whole and how these challenges manifest in the lives and experiences of ordinary people,” the statement read.

Basic services denied

“We are fully aware that people in Ditsobotla have been denied basic services for a long time and they want change now. However, we had to be guided by our feasibility study and research on the situation on the ground.”

Letlamoreng Mosiane is a leader of the Save Ditsobotla Movement, who left the ANC after the dissolution of the council. He is vying to take the troubled municipality from the hands of the ANC.

“I maintain that I grew up in the ANC and I understand it better than any other organisation. As the Save Ditsobotla Movement, we are gunning for 12 council seats. There is no way in which the ANC can win, not in our presence,” Mosiane said.

Forum For Democrats president Thabiso Morebantwa said they were not prepared to share power with other parties “because it is evident the coalition arrangements work best in the interests of the political leaders, while neglecting the people on the ground.”

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