By Zintle Mahlati 
21m ago
Johannesburg – ActionSA leader, Herman Mashaba, will be his party’s preferred candidate for the Johannesburg mayoral position if the party manages to garner enough votes during the upcoming local government elections.
Mashaba announced on Thursday that he would be running as mayoral candidate for ActionSA.
The former Joburg mayor made a plea for public support to ensure his return to the mayoral seat he vacated in 2019.
Mashaba left the DA that year and resigned as Joburg mayor, citing ideological differences with the opposition political party.
He came into power in 2016 through a coalition partnership between the DA and the EFF, and other smaller political parties in the Joburg council.
During his briefing on Thursday, Mashaba said his three-year stint as Joburg mayor had delivered services.
Mashaba said he regretted not having been able finish the tasks he had set out for himself in 2016.
“Truth be told, when I left then as mayor, a little over two years ago, I was disappointed that I was unable to complete the mission that I had set out on – certainly not under the party I then worked with.
“As a multi-party coalition government, we wanted to drive an agenda that, for the first time in Johannesburg’s history, focused on getting the basics of service delivery right, while also prioritising a pro-poor and inclusive agenda that benefited all residents,” Mashaba said.
He said a lot of the progress his coalition government had made in Joburg, had been reversed by the ANC.
“Much of the progress made by the multi-party government, which I led, has been reversed by the present administration. Residents have suffered the brunt of a decline in key services needed, to lead dignified and fulfilled lives,” he said.
ActionSA was launched in 2020 and has since seen several former DA members join its ranks.
This year’s elections will be the first that the party will contest. It has targeted big metros in Tshwane, Ekurhuleni and Joburg to run councillor candidates.
The ANC had narrowly held on to Ekurhuleni but lost Tshwane and Joburg in the 2016 local government elections.
Mashaba said his party’s driving mission was to unseat the ANC.
ActionSA will not be competing in all the municipalities around the country because Mashaba said this was not a wise political decision for the party – at the moment.
Mashaba said the target was to build support towards the 2024 national elections.
He encouraged voters to vote for anyone but the ANC especially where ActionSA was not present.
On coalition partnerships, Mashaba said ActionSA was willing to partner with any party except for the ANC.
“In the event that voters do not give outright majority, we are prepared to work with all parties but not the ANC,” Mashaba said.
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Political Bureau
Credit IOL