ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said the DA asked the party to negotiate with the EFF on their behalf. Photo: ActionSA
Members of ActionSA have threatened the political party with court action due to demands that have allegedly not been met.
This follows a picket by members outside the Johannesburg council chambers on Thursday as the City of Joburg was having its first council meeting.
Their demands include – among other things – the appointment of Soweto representatives in the city council.
Pinky Motitjwa, a member of the party, claims that they are being undermined by the party.
“We thought [Herman] Mashaba is our last hope,” she says.
“We worked so hard. We used from our pockets to get those numbers. Now we are nowhere.”
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ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba was not present at the scene.
The crowd was instead met by the party’s Gauteng chair John Moodey and party caucus chair Funzi Ngobeni, who attempted to address the members.
Motitjwa also says that of the 22 seats occupied by ActionSA, there are no representatives for the Soweto region.
She claims that instead, white people who are not in touch with township issues have been appointed by the party to Soweto.
Mashaba claims that there are no divisions in his party, and that the protest action in Johannesburg was orchestrated by people who have been expelled from the party.
He describes the disgruntled group as people who joined ActionSA for the “wrong reasons”.
“They participated as ward councillors and lost and they expect us to just put them on.
“If anyone believes that they come from the ANC because they wanted positions in ActionSA, unfortunately they made a terrible mistake.
“They are expelled because after losing their wards they think we must change our list, which was given to the IEC long before the time, so we expelled them, and they can go back to the ANC where they come from,” Mashaba said.
Following their protest action, the group left the scene, declaring to meet its leadership in court.
NOW READ: ActionSA used us for votes, say disgruntled members
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