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Good party expels three Theewaterskloof councillors for going rogue to oust municipality’s DA mayor

Good party expels three Theewaterskloof councillors for going rogue to oust municipality’s DA mayor
Velani Ludidi
By Velani Ludidi
11 Sep 2024
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The Good party has fired three of its councillors in Theewaterskloof accused of breaking the party’s coalition agreement by voting with the ANC and Freedom Front Plus to remove the municipality’s DA mayor.

The Good party’s national management committee has informed three of its Theewaterskloof Local Municipality councillors - Stanley Shuma, John Michels and Jennifer Mckenzie - that their membership has been terminated.

It said the decision was rooted in their failure to adhere to the “Good Constitution and the coalition agreement” with the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Social Revolutionary Workers Party (SRWP) in the Western Cape municipality. 

DA mayor Lincoln de Bruyn was ousted from his position at the beginning of this month after just two weeks in office. The motion of no confidence, brought by ANC councillor Derick Appel and seconded by Raymond Nongxaza (ANC), resulted in De Bruyn’s removal.

Subsequently, Tienie Zimmermann of the Freedom Front Plus (FF+) was nominated by the ANC and elected as mayor with support from other smaller parties, leading to the DA losing by a single vote.

Read more: DA-led Theewaterskloof coalition collapses after ANC backs FF+ mayor

Just two weeks before De Bruyn’s removal, the DA, Good and SRWP said they had reached a coalition agreement that would ensure “stability” in Theewaterskloof, where “residents can finally find faith in an administration that cares and puts the needs of residents first”.

Before the DA, Good and SRWP coalition elected De Bruyn in August, an ANC and Patriotic Alliance coalition led the council.

Memberships terminated


Following De Bruyn’s removal, there were allegations that either some DA or Good members voted with the ANC and FF+, giving it the necessary votes to pass the no-confidence motion. 

The DA and Good denied this, but Good’s national leadership wrote to its councillors asking them to explain how De Bruyn was ousted.

It appears that Good has found that it was its councillors that reneged on the coalition agreement. 

“The Good national management committee has informed Stanley Shuma, John Michels and Jenni Mckenzie, councillors in the Theewaterskloof Municipality, that their membership of Good was terminated,” said the party in a statement on Wednesday. 

“In terms of the Good Constitution, Shuma, Michels and Mckenzie have five days in which to appeal this decision and the party will not provide any further comment on this matter during this appeal period.”

Good’s secretary-general, Brett Herron, previously denied the party’s members voted for the no-confidence motion and claimed DA members had voted their own mayor out. 

“If any of our councillors broke from the party’s position on this coalition, they will find their membership terminated. Our Constitution is clear on that. What happened was an act of bad faith, and we will not tolerate it,” he told News24.

The fired councillors could not be reached for comment on Wednesday.

One of the councillors, Michels, posted on Facebook: “I will make an announcement on Friday about my new political home and it will be a party that exclusively has the interests of our colored [sic] people and especially our children at heart.” 

Western Cape DA leader Tertuis Simmers said he noted the developments and provided no further comment.

Financial troubles


Daily Maverick has established that De Bruyn, during his two weeks in office, was investigating possible corruption by previous office bearers. 

“Grant funding was deposited; however, the money was used to cover other expenses,” reads a letter De Bruyn sent to Graham Paulse, head of the Department of Local Government in the Western Cape, noting that some grant funding was categorised as unspent.

“In respect of the unspent grant of R41,304,000: The matter is currently being investigated and dealt with by external attorneys appointed by the municipality.” 

Theewaterskloof was one of 16 hung councils in the Western Cape after the 2021 local government elections and is the latest in the province to change hands.

Last month, the DA crashed out of power in Langeberg Local Municipality after the coalition agreement between the DA and the FF+ crumbled when the DA lodged a dispute with the FF+ over its refusal to support the coalition’s budget in May.

This came after the DA lost power in Oudtshoorn Local Municipality earlier in August. In Oudtshoorn, the DA and FF+ coalition agreement splintered when the FF+ joined the ANC, Patriotic Alliance (PA), Good party and Oudtshoorn Community Initiative in voting for a motion of no confidence against the then DA mayor. 

Read more: ANC and FF Plus join forces in new local governance model in Western Cape

Theewaterskloof municipality has been beset by financial troubles for years, which was made worse by the severe weather which wreaked havoc in the Overberg region of the Western Cape in September 2023.

The municipality includes the towns of Greyton, Grabouw, Genadendal, Villiersdorp, Tesselaarsdal, Riviersonderend, Caledon and Botrivier. DM

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