Johannesburg - The DA’s Marlene van Staden was elected mayor of Modimolle-Mookgophong Local Municipality - a win which was determined after a coin was tossed following a stalemate by political parties in the council chambers yesterday.
The ANC holds 14 seats in the council while the opposition DA, EFF and Freedom Front Plus (FF+) also collectively hold he same number of seats.
Desiree van der Walt - the DA’s political head of the Waterberg constituency - said they hope Van Staden will do a sterling job in the municipality. They were looking forward to the new administration in the council, said Van der Walt.
“Mayor Van Staden was elected through a coin toss after there had been two tied rounds of voting (14 votes each), with the EFF and FF Plus councillors voting for our candidate. The council had held four previous council meetings with no resolution on the position of mayor, while a speaker was only elected at the fourth meeting,” Van der Walt said.
Councillor Sinah Langa of the ANC was elected as Speaker at the previous council sitting and Councillor Maria Kekana of the ANC has also been elected as Chief Whip on Thursday. The Council also resolved to replace the Acting Municipal Manager, Dr Melusi Mhlanga, with the current Town Planning Director, Ms Dakalo Sinthumule.
“The DA is excited and looks forward to continue on its sustained efforts to ensure good governance, revitalise the local economy and provide good basic services for all residents within the municipality.
“We are committed to putting the residents of Modimolle-Mookgophong first and ensuring that the municipality gets back to its main purpose of ensuring services for all residents.
baldwin.ndaba@inl.co.za
Political Bureau