As Nelson Mandela Bay political parties are expected to battle it out in the Port Elizabeth High Court on Thursday morning, the Patriotic Alliance has pulled its support from the DA and other coalition partners, COPE and ACDP.
In a bombshell statement, Patriotic Alliance councillor and national chairman Marlon Daniels said he initially supported the DA and others’ bid to challenge the removal of Athol Trollip as mayor and the election of a new government, but he has subsequently had a change of heart.
“The Patriotic Alliance has taken a decision to withdraw from the shared legal action brought by the Democratic Alliance, Congress of the People and African Christian Democratic Party against the council meeting last month that saw the ousting of Athol Trollip and the formerly governing coalition, of which the PA was part.
“In our analysis, the motion of no confidence played out in an unfortunate manner, particularly for the DA, but we no longer feel there is a strong enough basis to challenge it, either in law or from a political perspective.
“The new coalition government under mayor Mongameli Bobani is now in power and needs to be given a chance to prove itself.”
He said Bobani had made “big promises” to work to improve services in the city, saying he hoped the new coalition government would bring much-needed peace for the people of the metro.
Daniels added that he would play his role as a member of the opposition. “In our view, the many complaints regarding the old coalition from the black caucus parties and the threats from certain sections of the community to withhold rate payments were not entirely without basis.
“What has particularly left a bad taste in the mouth is the comments of some politicians and residents in the metro in reaction to mayor Bobani taking over that can’t be described as normal critique.
“It has racist overtones and suggests the view that black people can’t govern. As the PA, we reject this. “The PA exists for the people, not for the benefit of other political parties”.
He said the DA should get its house in order. “They are facing a mutiny. We could not go to war with an army that disregards its own commanders,” Daniels said.
Read the rest of the statement below: