A meeting between the leadership of the Patriotic Alliance and the ANC over the former’s threat to walkout of coalitions if it’s deputy president Kenny Kunene is not reinstated as a Mayoral Committee Member in the City of Joburg.
The PA is adamant that at the the meeting scheduled for tuesday evening the ANC should agree to reinstate Kunene or face to prospects of many coalitions collapsing starting with JB Marks Municipality in the North West.
“Every councillor of the PA in JB Marks and anywhere else in the country will have to withdraw if Kenny Kunene is not put back as roads and transport MMC, me too will leave the GNU. I’m not blushing,” said in a live broadcast on Facebook.
ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula confirmed on Sunday while talking to television news channel eNCA that the party valued PA’s contribution even though its departure will not necessarily collapse the Government of National Unity.
“It will not destabilise the GNU, but in terms of our cooperation, PA has been a very loyal and a very important partner in relation to the GNU, and in this particular instance, the matter that may lead to their departure cannot be about what is happening in Johannesburg. There are far important and bigger issues that can lead to (2:05) their departure. It will be unfortunate if that were to happen because of Johannesburg,” said Mbalula of the PA’s reason for the standoff.
Mbalula was confident a deal would be reached to avert mass withdrawal of PA councillors in municipalities across the country as well as in the Gauteng provincial government where Mckenzie’s party is a coalition partner of the ANC. The stand off in the City of Joburg is a result of a reported intention by the ANC to move Kunene to a different portfolio in give the roads and transport department to the EFF and Mbalula said local dynamics should be resolved at that level while also admitting the PA is correct in insisting it has a deal that must be honoured.
“We are all partners in the coalition in Johannesburg, so I’m saying to you as a respected coalition partner, their wishes and the agreements that we have had with them around coalition in Johannesburg mustbe respected.You must understand that this is not the ANC government. It is a coalition partnership with the ANC occupying the mayoral position. We have not won the elections in Johannesburg,” said Mbalula.
Kunene was sworn in as a councillor last week and is waiting to be appointed an MMC.