PORT ELIZABETH - ANCYL WARNS DISRUPTION OF NMB METRO'S FIRST COUNCIL MEETING MERELY THE BEGINNING

The ANCYL warned that the disruption of the Nelson Mandela Bay metro’s first council meeting yesterday was merely the beginning.

The ANC had threatened to seek a court interdict to stop the meeting and its councillors walked out. The DA’s Athol Trollip was elected as mayor.

“It won’t be nice that in the next council meeting Trollip is kicked out, just like that. But we have warned. From now on, gloves are off,” tweeted the league in the Eastern Cape from its account called @#ANCYLThanksYou.

It won’t be nice that in the next council meeting Trollip is kicked out, just like that. But we have warned. From now on, gloves are off.— #ANCYLThanksYou (@ANCYL_EC) August 18, 2016

Municipal manager, Johann Mettler, received a letter from the ANC’s lawyers stating the party was not happy with the allocation of the proportional representation seats. Should the meeting go ahead they would seek an interdict from the courts.

“I have instructed our attorney to respond to their attorney,” he said.

In his inaugural address, Trollip vowed to stop corruption and promised to ensure that all council employees had the right qualifications for the job.

He promised to get rid of the metro’s bucket system by 2017 – an issue he had complained to the SA Human Rights Commission about.

Before proceedings started, Cape Town Mayor Patricia De Lille, also a DA leader, took part in an impromptu version of the Kalamatianós Greek circle dance inside the council chambers. EFF councillors arrived in their red overalls and kitchen aprons.

When no one party emerged as a clear winner after the 3 August local government election, the DA-led multi-party agreement was formed to get the over 50% majority needed to run the council, and oust the ANC as the majority.

The top council posts reflected the agreement. Trollip’s deputy was UDM regional chairperson Mongameli Bobani. DA councillor Jonathan Lawack was elected Speaker and DA councillor Werner Senekal as Chief Whip.

Trollip was voted in to office with 67 of the 120 votes available.

This meant the EFF would have decided to vote with them on that occasion, in line with their decision to not go into coalition with anybody, but to use their votes strategically.

After the August 3 local government elections, the DA secured 46.7% of the vote and 57 seats in the 120-seat council. The ANC secured 40.9%, thus gaining just 50 seats, a major drop from its 62 seats won in 2011.

The EFF was the third largest party, securing 5.1% of the vote, and six seats. The UDM secured 1.9% of the vote, or two seats.

The remaining five seats went to the African Independent Conference (AIC), the United Front of the Eastern Cape (UFEC), Cope, ACDP, and the newly formed Patriotic Alliance.

The metro was previously an ANC stronghold. Many of its leaders came from the Eastern Cape, including former presidents Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki.

VIA - news24.com