Johannesburg mayor Kabelo Gwamanda has resigned.
Residents of the troubled Johannesburg metro will soon have a new mayor. This after Kabelo Gwamanda resigned, amid increased dissatisfaction and a reordering of the political landscape locally and nationally.
In a statement on Tuesday, the youngest man to serve as mayor in the country’s financial capital, announced his resignation. He spent little more than a year in the city’s top seat, the fifth to hold the position since the last municipal election.
“As the youngest mayor of Johannesburg, I am humbled by the opportunity to have led this City and to have stabilised it financially and administratively, following the collapse of the multiparty coalition government,” he said.
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Gwamanda under pressure
Gwamanda was thrust to the helm when his colleague in Al Jama-ah, Thapelo Amad, resigned just a day before a motion of no confidence was to be held. He was placed as a compromise between the ANC and EFF.
But most recently, ActionSA cosied up to the ANC in a bid to get Gwamanda out. The EFF, meanwhile, grew distant from the ANC over its national coalition with the DA, FF+ and the like.
The final straw came when City Power implemented a R200 surcharge, a move that infuriated residents and civil society organisations alike. ActionSA committed to working with the ANC, on condition that he vacated his seat.
Even after defending it, saying it was here to stay, it appears he chose to call it quits and hand the chains over. The next mayor will likely come from ANC ranks.
