Msimanga grins as EFF walks out – leaving the mayor secure

Tshwane Executive Mayor Solly Msimanga grinned on Thursday after the EFF's motion of no confidence in his leadership was disallowed by Speaker Katlego Mathebe.

The EFF and ANC both lodged no-confidence motions in the mayor, but Mathebe said the EFF had failed to provide its motivation for the urgent motion in writing. The party, who had committed to removing Msimanga, then left the council sitting, meaning the ANC's motion will fail to pass.

“We are saying we cannot be part of the wrong things,” said EFF's Benjamin Disoloane. “We are not going back to the council. We are going to court.”

The DA said the EFF had failed to adhere to the rules on lodging an urgent motion, which Mathebe agreed to. The ANC tried to argue that the EFF's motion was legitimate.

“What happened to Trollip there is going to happen here. We are not going to give up, speaker,” Disoloane told the speaker.

On Monday, opposition parties including the EFF and ANC passed a motion of no confidence in former Nelson Mandela Bay Athol Trollip. The EFF committed to doing the same in Tshwane.

While EFF leader Julius Malema had continued to say his party would punish the DA in Tshwane, on Thursday the DA said it would refuse to remove Msimanga in line with the opposition party's demands.

Councillors went to lunch after the EFF walked out and it's likely that the ANC's motion may still be heard. But without the EFF's 25 members in the chamber, the DA-led coalition has the most seats in council. DM