Former City of Johannesburg Executive Mayor Herman Mashaba said he was dismayed that the City had fallen back into the hands of the (alleged) ‘corrupt ANC’.
“I share the anger of the five-million residents of Johannesburg that the work of turning the City around has been destroyed by the election of councillor Geoff Makhubo,” said Mashaba.
“The fact that Makhubo was elected with the help of some members of the previous multi-party coalition government, together with a number of DA councillors, demonstrates everything that is wrong with our political system. The considerations were all about personal and political benefit, and not about the residents of Johannesburg.”
He added the fact that some DA councillors elected to vote for Makhubo over their own candidate, demonstrated why he had to leave the DA. “The DA of today is clearly not the DA that I joined, not when they support an allegedly corrupt person.
“That my former coalition partners have abandoned the multi-party government, speaks clearly to the fact that I am not alone in my view. They did not see a prospect of working with the DA in a coalition that is open, engages with different solutions to our complex problems, and is willing to set aside differences in the interests of the residents.
“While I am deeply saddened and angered for the residents of Johannesburg, it is clear for everyone to see that the DA was ready to push me out of government in Johannesburg. As I said in my resignation speech, ‘It is not my nature to hang around to be pushed’.
Mashaba chastised the DA councillors whom he accused of voting for Makhubo, saying they were clearly lined up to vote for the ANC’s motion of no confidence against the mutli-party coalition government.
“As a result, instead of having a mayor who fights corruption, Johannesburg will now have a mayor who is allegedly corrupt. This is why I cannot give up on the project to save Johannesburg and South Africa.
“The people of South Africa need a solution that places our residents at the centre, and not the self-interest displayed in council yesterday [4 December].”
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