After winning its third seat in the Kou-Kamma council in the Eastern Cape, the Patriotic Alliance, with the support of the DA and FF+, has successfully removed speaker Dudley Maasdorp.
The PA submitted a motion of no confidence in Maasdorp after video footage allegedly showed him brandishing a firearm at a resident.
The party also wrote to Eastern Cape co-operative governance and traditional affairs MEC Zolile Williams, asking him to act against Maasdorp.
In September, shocking video footage emerged of Maasdorp allegedly brandishing a firearm, hurling insults at residents and threatening to kill them during a chaotic street scuffle in Joubertina.
At Monday’s council meeting, the DA and PA, which hold three seats each, joined the FF+’s single vote to oust independent councillor Maasdorp, who is aligned with the ANC-led ruling coalition.
The ANC has four seats in the council.
FF+ councillor Sharon Ferguson was elected interim speaker during the meeting.
She will act in the position until the next council meeting, which is expected to be held in January.
PA provincial chair Nadine Murray could not be reached for comment by the time of publication.
Maasdorp declined to comment, saying he would do so later.
Asked on Wednesday whether his party would push to have the ANC removed from power in Kou-Kamma, DA Eastern Cape leader Andrew Whitfield said he would prefer to do so after the 2026 local government elections to avoid instability.
“We can’t have a situation where a hung council moves back and forth.
“The back-and-forth [in changing ruling coalitions] has led Nelson Mandela Bay to where it is today. We are very mindful of that.
“We’ll engage parties, and if we feel we can turn things around, we will take things from there.”
Whitfield said, given the composition of the council now, a change of government was certainly possible.
“The question we need to ask is on what basis a new government can be installed.
“There must be a negotiation that is done based on what’s in the interest of Kou-Kamma, which is to improve service delivery.
“Many parties negotiate on positions first.
“Any engagement from the DA’s perspective will be based on a service delivery plan and whether it can succeed before the election.
“There’s a year before council is reconstituted. We want to ensure we don’t fuel instability.
“The DA committed to removing the ANC in municipalities.
“In Kou-Kamma, there’s temptation to get power, but there’s no discussion about what to do with that power.
“We won’t have a gun put to our head to say there are non-negotiables because that’s a breeding ground for instability.”
Ferguson could not be reached for comment by the time of publication.
The Herald