I met with controversial DA councillor Dave Dewes over a cup of coffee to find out why, after 10 years as ward councillor in Florida, he is not available for re-election to the ward.
To my first question to the councillor, “Do you think it’s fair to be labelled as controversial?”, Dewes replied, “If hiring a double- decker bus to gate-crash a Roodepoort Care of the Aged meeting to oust the then chairman Rudi Du Plooy senior, and later being vindicated because he left South Africa under a very dark cloud of massive fraud and corruption allegations, then I am controversial. Fighting on behalf of Roodepoort voters and organising a mass protest and class action in contravention of my employment contract and then the ANC-led CoJ trying to fire me, then I am controversial. Appearing in public with a shower head attached to my head, ridiculing a president whom the majority of citizens have respect for, then I have to admit that I’ve come to live with the word ‘controversial’. I’ve always pushed the boundaries and have never been satisfied with mediocrity. As a politician, I believe it’s my job to create maximum publicity to highlight serious issues affecting every voter.”
Word on the street is that you have abandoned Florida after 10 years as the serving councillor – what is your comment? “Being a ward councillor possibly is the most soul-destroying job anybody could ask for, but there are times that it is unbelievably rewarding. Allow me to explain; how do you fix street lights, power outages, long grass, potholes, illegal trading, drug lords or homelessness? I can carry on about the massive demands on a ward councillor, yet you have no say in budget allocation, and the level of expertise and work ethic of CoJ officials. The public wants results, but you as the opposition politician have to deal with petty party politics that has absolutely nothing to do with service delivery. The irony is that DA politicians can’t look good because that will take votes from the ruling party. There is absolutely nothing more soul-destroying than despite continually offering the solution – not just highlighting the problem – it can’t be implemented purely because of party politics.
“On the other hand, because of my optimistic vision for Florida, I have been able to make major breakthroughs. Examples are promoting the soon-to-be-implemented first phase of the urban hike, called The Freedom Walk, connecting Soweto with the Cradle of Humankind. After a 10-year battle to get Florida Taxi Rank upgraded, it was approved eventually only a month ago, which will start to address the real evidence of urban decay and revolutionise informal trading. Having been able to sort out the queries or desperate situations for many individuals has been enormously rewarding.
“Yet I’ve realised that to drive the bigger issues that are really going to make a significant difference, you can’t be bogged down by having to micro manage incompetent officials, as this is exactly what a ward councillor does on a daily basis. I am now standing for the PR list (proportional representative) and depending on how many votes the DA gets, I should come back in. PR councillors do not have the responsibility of a ward, therefore I will have a lot more time to drive the bigger economic solutions, not only for Florida but for the whole of Joburg.”
Why have you chosen to stand in Meadowlands Soweto? “What can I say, I’m controversial by nature! In the whole of Soweto I’m the only white politician standing in a ward. I’m a businessman before I’m a politician and the township’s biggest plight is joblessness, where I know I can make a significant difference. I realise that my chances of winning are questionable, but I want to prove once again that coming up with realistic solutions will help grow the DA, instead of promoting ludicrous, unattainable promises, typical of the EFF and the ruling party. While the vast majority of residents in Florida vote DA, it is the complete opposite in Meadowlands Ward 42 where I am standing. Where will I make the bigger difference? This is not about Dave Dewes, it is about the DA winning Joburg.”
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