ActionSA councillor and former deputy mayor Nasiphi Moya has been elected as the new mayor of Tshwane through a secret ballot. (Photo by Alet Pretorius/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
ActionSA councillor and former deputy mayor Nasiphi Moya has been elected as the new mayor of Tshwane through a secret ballot.
Moya received 122 votes, beating former mayor Cilliers Brink, who obtained 86 out of 208 votes cast on Wednesday. There were no spoiled ballots.
Moya’s election was supported by a coalition of the ANC, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and ActionSA, which collectively hold more than 110 seats in the 214-seat Tshwane council.
Early on Wednesday morning, the ANC announced that it would support an ActionSA mayor, honouring an agreement made between the two parties to form a coalition government in the metros, similar to the one in Johannesburg.
This arrangement led to Brink’s removal last month through a motion of no confidence proposed by the ANC. His departure followed the election of Dada Morero as mayor of Johannesburg, a move that marked the first collaboration between ActionSA and the ANC since the smaller party’s formation in 2020 under Herman Mashaba’s leadership.
“After extensive engagement on the calibre of the candidates and the tight timeframes, we have to sort out the problems; the ANC agreed to support the candidature of the current acting mayor, councillor Dr Nasiphi Moya,” the ANC said in a statement.
Moya had served as deputy mayor in the DA-led multiparty government in Tshwane before being nominated for mayor by ANC Tshwane regional chair Eugene Modise.
Her nomination was supported by councillors from the EFF and Pan Africanist Congress, which called for “change” during the proceedings.
“To the residents of Tshwane, hear me clearly. It is not lost on me, the anxiety and the political instability that has plagued this city,” Moya said in her acceptance speech on Wednesday.
She vowed to bring stability to the city of Tshwane.
“To the residents of Soshonguve, Hammanskraal, Mamelodi, Centurion, Bronkhorstspruit, Ga-Rankuwa, Lynnwood, Kameeldrift, Waterkloof, Irene, Sokhulumi and everyone residing in between, I’m here to tell you that I am not an ActionSA mayor or a mayor from any other party for that matter,” she said.
During the council meeting, the African Christian Democratic Party expressed its support for Moya and acknowledged the ANC for supporting her election while calling for transparency during her tenure.
The Freedom Front Plus warned that Moya would face difficulties, including more than 1 000 unresolved forensic investigations, and emphasised the need for accountability.
“You are inheriting a lot of problems. We heard a lot of threats, officials will be removed. We want to see whether you remove competent people. There are over 1 000 forensic orders, we will see if you make good on your promise to hold those to account,” the party said.
“We know there are councillors who owe over R2 million, we are and will be an informed opposition. I challenge you and the executive to go through the vetting process to ensure integrity.”
The election of Moya took place despite Democratic Alliance federal chairperson Helen Zille giving the ANC an ultimatum to reinstate Brink or face a breakdown in the parties’ relationship at council level.
Source:
mg.co.za
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