Former Ekurhuleni mayor Mzwandile Masina has withdrawn from the race to lead the metros council, paving the way for the appointment of the EFF’s Nkululeko Dunga.
A new executive mayor is expected to be elected on Thursday after the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) Tania Campbell was removed by a motion of no confidence last week.
The African National Congress (ANC) claimed she had failed to provide proper service delivery to the city’s residents, but the DA denied this, and its coalition council partners came out to support her.
While 100 councillors voted in support of her removal, 93 councillors voted against her ousting, with the Economic Freedom Fighters abstaining from the vote.
Speaking to journalists outside the council chambers, Masina confirmed his withdrawal and said he was defeated when attempting to run for second term.
“No, unfortunately, I’ve served my five-year-term. When I attempted a second term I was defeated, so it’s time to focus on other issues in the movement. You can’t just be holding on,” Masina said.
His withdrawal comes after councillors were preparing to elect a new mayor following the ousting of Campbell.
However, Campbell is expected to stand again as the DA’s mayoral candidate after she served 11 months 11 months as the metro’s mayor.
It was widely anticipated that the ANC would field Masina as their preferred mayoral candidate, but the former mayor of Ekurhuleni had withdrawn from the race.
Masina was the mayor of Ekurhuleni for one term under a multiparty coalition government from 2016 to 2021.
There has been speculation that the EFF’s Dunda could be elected as the new mayor of Ekurhuleni, but Masina refused to comment on this.
“Let’s wait for the right moment but I’m not available as the mayoral candidate,” Masina said.
Source: Business Day, IOL, The Citizen, Times Live, image from Twitter: @TheLegalSA