Newly elected executive mayor of Joburg Thapelo Amad says his appointment as the first black Muslim mayor has tested democracy and he has vowed to hit the ground running.
Amad, 41, of the minority Al Jama-ah party, was elected mayor with 138 votes more than his predecessor Mpho Phalatse (81 votes) and ActionSA caucus leader Funzi Ngobeni (46 votes).
“It humbles me that all stakeholders who are involved in supporting this course came on board and supported my name,” Amad said.
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There has been talk that Amad was given the post to push the agenda of the ANC and Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF). He dismissed those rumours and argued he would advance the agenda of the city’s six million residents.
‘We represent the masses’
“I am not sure who has been saying these things but I believe it is a collective effort. That effort doesn’t only come from the parties that are in government, we are still going to consult with the DA [Democratic Alliance], other stakeholders, front-line workers and the residents.
“We represent the masses and that is whose agenda we are going to push” he said.
It is still not clear how long Amad will be in the position, as the ANC and EFF agreed to place him in the mayorship position until they resolved their squabbles. Amad also could not confirm how long he would be in the position amid criticism that he was merely an interim mayor.
“I honestly do not know because I don’t even know what are squabbles there. Whichever time it will take, we will welcome it. We agreed in principle and we know it was supposed to be an ANC mayor who emerged today,” Amad said.
“If they don’t find each other, it has no bearing to us, if God almighty says he needs to conclude the term; we will definitely conclude the term.”
‘It is a tough job’
Reflecting on his defeat while speaking to Saturday Citizen, Ngobeni said ActionSA would support Amad because they wanted to bring about stability in the city.
“That is what all of us should be concerned about. If that stability can be provided by Thapelo Amad and the block that is supporting him, we will definitely support them,” Ngobeni said.
“Of course, we will hold them accountable, we will exercise our oversight as an opposition party, but it will be constructive opposition.”
Asked if Amad was capable of running SA’s richest metro, Ngobeni said people could only judge him by his performance.
“It would be premature for me to say he is capable or not capable, we will give him an opportunity to prove himself,” he said.
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“It is a tough job; Johannesburg is the biggest economic hub of the country, he will need a lot of support and he needs people around him who will help him succeed.”
“We are just a call away if he needs us.”
Phalatse said the DA would not sit back and disappoint the 26% of residents who voted for them to govern during the local government elections in 2021.
“They expect us to try and govern and that is exactly what we are doing,” Phalatse said.
“We will work with them but we will make sure that they’re doing right by our residents.”
ANC Gauteng chair Panyaza Lesufi said Amad was not put as a mayor to be used by the ANC.
“Insults must not be the order of engaging us. If you have facts and evidence against the ANC, present those facts. I can challenge anyone who says the ANC is using anybody to give us facts and no-one will present it.”
Joburg speaker Colleen Makhubele assured residents they would kick-start the city, come hell or high water.
“One of the priorities is to provide oversight on the executive mayor… We have faith in him. We know that he can deliver.”
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– lungam@citizen.co.za
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