NW ANC members defy party again, vote EFF mayor

ANC councillors at Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District municipality voted with EFF to elect a red berets mayor on Friday. Tebogo Babuile is the newly elected Dr RSM mayor.  His election comes four days after other ANC councillors helped the EFF to have a Speaker at Mamusa Local Municipality.  ANC councillors defied the party for the second time despite condemnation by both the provincial and national leadership as well as threats to investigate and then discipline those involved. EFF provincial secretary, Papiki Babuile, welcomed the victory. “We are happy with the confidence that the councillors of Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati District have in the EFF. And we are going to make sure we address all the service delivery challenges in the district and make sure that we run a government that is going to give its people services,” Babuile said. There are 30 council seats in Dr Ruth Segomotsi Mompati. EFF won with 17 votes, ANC received 10 votes, while three people abstained from voting. ANC had nominated Gaolatlhe Kgabo who was implicated in the VBS Mutual Bank scandal. Kgabo, who worked as a Member of Mayoral Committee for Infrastructure at Dr RSM District Municipality, was implicated in the decision by the municipality to invest R150 million in VBS against National Treasury regulations.  Newsnote could not get hold of ANC’s Interim Provincial Committee chairperson, Hlomane Chauke, at the time of going to print.