Mokgoro not the right man for the job – DA

The Democratic Alliance (DA) Job Mokgoro is “not the right man for the job” of North West premier.

This comes after ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule said on Monday that the ANC national executive committee had decided to retain Mokgoro as the premier of North West.

The DA’s Joe McGluwa said the party was not surprised by Mokgoro’s nomination “because almost a year ago he was pulled from retirement and was also used as a neutraliser within the ANC faction fights – with not much success”.

“It is no secret that Premier Mokgoro was a compromise candidate, who has been tasked by Luthuli House to balance the interests of two opposing factions. One faction is led by Cyril Ramaphosa’s and another faction is led by a friend of Jacob Zuma and the Guptas, Supra Maphumulo. In all of this, the people do not come first.

“Mokgoro has a few skeletons of his own linking him to the shady game breeding deal in the province. The DA might gain legal opinion to implement the decision of the parliamentary portfolio committee on environmental affairs where it was revealed that at least two signatures and a letter addressed to Job Mokgoro link the North West premier to the 2015 multimillion-rand game donation.

“Mokgoro was the chairperson of the North West Parks Board when the donation was concluded in 2016,” McGluwa said.

The donation of more than 200 animals – including white rhinos, buffalo, nyalas and sables – worth more than R100 million was first red-flagged by the auditor-general, he added.

“The committee has found that the donation was not done according to the book and recommended its reversal. This has not happened to date.

“It is clear that the ANC is more divided than ever over who the premier should be – another clear indication that the ANC does not serve the interest of the people but that of the ANC. North West has been the only province battling to find consensus on who the newly elected premier should be.”

McGluwa further claimed that Mokgoro had since shown that he would “diligently serve the failing ANC” and “will always put party politics above the need and plight of our communities oppressed by poverty and unemployment”.

“Nothing has changed since Premier Mokgoro took over from disgraced former premier Supra Mahumapelo,” McGluwa said.

He added that the DA had stated from the onset that Mokgoro would have to start by rooting out corruption.

“He failed to table any strategy geared towards fixing the broken provincial health system; adopt strategies that could attract investment in order to build a growing and dynamic economy that guarantees access to real, long-term jobs, especially for the youth; working with SAPS to ensure “communities are kept safe and order restored; and ensure that targets for the building of houses are met and accelerate the distribution of title deeds.”

Instead, McGluwa claimed Mokgoro had utilised his time in office to try and sort out the party’s factions.

(Compiled by Makhosandile Zulu)

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