Youth League leader Mzwandile Masina says indemnity will help leaders leave office when their terms are up.
After losing out in Tshwane, Johannesburg and Nelson Mandela Bay, the ANC celebrated as its mayoral candidate for Ekurhuleni, Mzwandile Masina, was elected mayor on Tuesday.
Masina won the election with 117 votes swinging in his favour. Democratic Alliance (DA) mayoral candidate Ghaleb Cachalia received 106 votes. One ballot was spoilt in the process.
The victory will be a relief to the ruling party, which has been struck out of three major metros in South Africa after the local government elections: Johannesburg, Tshwane and Nelson Mandela Bay. All three metros will be led by the DA, but the ANC has managed to retain its leadership in Ekurhuleni.
Masina, who has served as the deputy minister of trade and industry, will take the reins from Mondli Gungubele. During the August 3 local government elections, Masina cast his ballot at Mogobeng Primary School in Katlehong, Ekurhuleni, where supporters cheered him along. His promise to them was to provide houses faster.
“People must stick with the ANC. If people stick with the ANC we will create jobs for them. We will also increase the pace with which we are building houses for them,” Masina reportedly said.
The EFF has previously stated that it would vote for the DA in all metros with the exception of Johannesburg if Mashaba would remain the party’s mayoral candidate in the city. But the ANC has had the backing of smaller parties, which reportedly includes the African Independent Congress, to help it finish first over the line in Ekurhuleni.
Voting is still under way in the Ekurhuleni’s inaugural council meeting for the chief whip of the council. The DA’s Ann Campbell and the ANC’s Jongisiwe Hlanathi have been nominated for the position.
Earlier today, the ANC’s Patricia Khumalo bagged 117 votes to be elected as speaker. The DA’s Shadow Shabangu bowed out with 106 votes.