The City of Ekurhuleni has had a grim five years: the bodies of 11 women found in various parts of the metro, a surge in anti-foreigner protests and allegations of infiltration by criminal cartels have overshadowed the political crisis wrought by unwieldy coalitions since 2021.
Executive mayor Nkosindiphile Xhakaza is scathing, calling those DA- and ANC-led coalitions “barren years”.
But the broader pattern is unlikely to change. According to eNCA MarkData polling and electoral trends, Ekurhuleni is headed for another hung council, with the DA coming in at 30%, the ANC at 29%, the MK Party at 11%, the EFF at 9%, ActionSA at 6.1% and the FF Plus at 5.2%.
The problem, says Xhakaza, is that unwieldy coalitions could be stitched together for reasons far removed from the interests of residents. But there is another, better way, if leaders have the courage to pursue it.
“I think we must have a framework that must guide the coalition,” he says. “A set of rules or some sort of mechanism … because a framework gives the guiding principles in terms of the dos and don’ts, and how you share power.”
He is candid about the difficulties the city has faced over the past five years. “We call that period the barren years of Ekurhuleni … a period of regression, a period of shame,” he says.
The common denominator in both the DA- and ANC-led coalitions was the EFF — and Xhakaza is clearly not a fan. He says he witnessed what a destructive role the party played both times.
For starters, former Ekurhuleni municipal manager Imogen Mashazi, out on bail facing charges of corruption, fraud and defeating the ends of justice, was backed by the party, he says.
But he’s particularly unhappy that EFF former finance MMC Nkululeko Dunga, whom he fired, was elevated by the Gauteng ANC to the position of finance MEC.
“I fired him because of a lack of performance, mismanagement of a programme. He was involved in the R21 accident with a private V-class [luxury vehicle] fitted with blue lights … I fired him because he was at the centre of these practices,” he says.
“Then this chap is … appointed by the premier [Panyaza Lesufi], the chair of the province from the ANC … I support him politically because he’s a good leader of the ANC, but I’m disappointed with some of his choices in terms of the coalition partners.
“He might raise his own politics about the DA and everything else. I respect him for that … but I don’t support this quagmire around the EFF, because you can’t appoint Dunga, who I had removed.”
Numbers game
If it were up to the ANC in Gauteng, the coalitions in the provincial metros would already be decided. Lesufi and the provincial team will reject working with the DA; they’ll be more amenable to working with smaller parties — such as the EFF.
However, the past five years have shown that this stance by the Gauteng ANC has destroyed the metros in the province, with the near-collapse of services in Joburg and parts of Ekurhuleni.
Xhakaza prefers the approach spelt out in the ANC’s national framework on coalitions, which stipulates that the largest parties in the council should take the first bite at setting up a government. He says it’s a pity that the national leadership of the party has not sought to enforce that framework more strongly.
The framework says that instead of “elitist pacts”, coalitions should “reflect the will of the people”, meaning parties with the largest share of the vote should work together; in the case of Ekurhuleni, that would be the ANC and the DA.
While Xhakaza is hesitant to spell out his preference (though his disdain for the EFF is obvious), it is clear from the polling numbers that there will be two options for the ANC or the DA in forming a government in Ekurhuleni.
The first is for the two large parties to work together. The second is the status quo — a tie-up between the ANC and its splinters, the EFF, MK and the SACP, and others.
The ANC in Gauteng is unlikely to pursue the first option. And the DA has said it will not work with the EFF and MK. Which means that even if the DA emerges as the largest party in Ekurhuleni, as polling suggests, it could end up on the opposition benches.
It seems Ekurhuleni is yet another South African city whose immense potential could be squandered on the altar of political expedience and venality come November 4.
Marrian is a political analyst at the Bureau for Economic Research
