Turncoat Nelson Mandela Bay DA councillor Trevor Louw has vowed to fight on after he and fellow councillor Neville Higgins had their application for leave to appeal against an earlier ruling which ejected them as councillors and members of the party dismissed.
“I feel disappointed in the outcome and don’t understand that the Judge can’t see that we never went through any disciplinary hearing,” Louw said.
He indicated he would appeal against the decision to dismiss the application for leave to appeal.
Higgins and Louw had approached the Port Elizabeth High Court in January to appeal against judge Elna Revelas’s decision, which declared them no longer DA members and councillors.
This after the pair had turned against the party and sided with the Bay’s new coalition government.
The reasons for the dismissal were not immediately available on Tuesday, with acting judge Fatima Dawood, standing in for Revelas, saying only that the application was dismissed with costs.
DA councillor Rano Kayser, speaking outside the court, said the party welcomed the ruling.
“We feel vindicated and we believe this makes it possible for new people for wards 35 and 37 to be elected.”
Kayser confirmed that the entire process of getting the IEC to make the announcement for by-elections would start from scratch.
DA Eastern Cape leader Nqaba Bhanga said the party was happy with the decision of the court.
“The DA in the Eastern Cape welcomes the fact that two of its former Nelson Mandela Bay ward councillors, who last year betrayed the trust and wishes of the people of this city, were given a proverbial blood nose in the high court,” he said.
“The municipal manager must now heed the judgment of the court and go ahead with by-elections in Ward 35 and Ward 37.
“The DA is ready to retake these wards and return to government in Nelson Mandela Bay,” Bhanga said.
Higgins did not respond to a request for comment.
Attorney Eric Mabuza, for Higgins and Louw, declined to comment and said he was awaiting instructions.