The DA and EFF singing together at the inaugural Ekurhuleni council meeting in Germiston in 2016. Now the mayor has been booted out. File Picture: Matthews Baloyi
Ekurhuleni Mayor Sivuyile Ngodwana has been voted out of office after weeks of wrangling in the metro.
Ngodwana, from the African Independent Congress (AIC), was voted out of office a year after the African National Congress (ANC)-Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) coalition removed Democratic Alliance (DA) mayor Tania Campbell.
But the ANC in the region has been unhappy with the EFF, and had initially backed the motion by ActionSA.
During the vote on the motion of no confidence against Ngodwana on Thursday, the ANC and DA abstained.
Ekurhuleni municipality courted controversy a few weeks ago after it was involved in a spat with the Auditor-General over the release of its audited financial statements.
ActionSA tabled the motion of no confidence against the mayor a few weeks ago, but the motion could not be voted on after chaos broke out in the previous sitting of council.
It was reconvened on Thursday where the mayor was removed.
The ANC was in a coalition with the EFF in Ekurhuleni.
However, the ANC is still in a coalition with the EFF in the City of Johannesburg.
Political analysts have warned about instability in coalitions in municipalities.
The government has been trying to create a framework that would govern coalitions.
The initiative was begun last year and government had hoped the framework was going to be concluded to create stability in the local government sphere.
siyabonga.mkhwanazi@inl.co.za
IOL Politics