Squabble over election of new Speaker in JHB City Council

JOHANNESBURG - The future of the DA-led coalition in Johannesburg hangs in the balance over disagreements on the position of council speaker.

Some coalition partners want smaller parties to fill the post but the DA insists it’ll be filled its own candidate.

Council will elect a new speaker on 28 September.

READ: Coalition Politics | Coalition parties in crisis?

The DA is leading a coalition of nine parties in Johannesburg.

Vasco Da Gama was ousted as council speaker through a motion of no confidence.

Action SA and the Patriotic Alliance now want that position to be held by the IFP.

The DA, already identifying Da Gama’s replacement among its caucus members, isn’t willing to give the position to any coalition partner.

DA provincial chairperson Fred Nel said, “not at this stage, because that will mean that we will have to reopen coalition negotiations and there's already a signed agreement in place and that agreement is very, very clear that the speaker position must be occupied by DA councillor."

"So in order to change that, they will have to ask for negotiations to be reopened. And that would mean that a number of positions will then have to be renegotiated and I think it is very dangerous to do that at this stage.”

The Patriotic Alliance is sounding the alarm that the DA’s insistence threatens the sustainability of the coalition government.

The PA's Charles Cilliers said, “I think that ultimately they will see reason because most of the other parties are for a reformulation because it's for the best interest of the city for the coalition because it will cement the coalition because at the moment the IFP in particular is underrepresented."

"And if we lose the IFP then we lose this coalition. If we lose the PA, then we definitely lose this coalition. So the DA should think long term. We still got more than four years ahead of us, and we should try to keep this coalition intact.”

Action SA - the third biggest party after the ANC and the DA, warns that the DA’s actions may return the ANC to power.

Action SA's provincial chairperson Bongani Baloyi said, “it would be ludicrous of the DA and self defeating of the DA to not appreciate that circumstances have changed, that there’s a growing sense among coalition members that there’s a call for greater inclusion in the Troika, more so in the position of Speaker, the Chief Whip and Executive Mayor, where currently the DA holds all three positions as if they’ve won elections, there’s no junior member of this coalition, there’s no senior member... We’re all the same because on vote can make a very big difference."

"While the IFP this week fired Sbusiso Phakathi for voting with the opposition to remove Da Gama, other councillors from Cope, ACDP and UDM who voted likewise, remain in council. And, the DA can’t count on their votes."

Predictions over whether the DA will get its way are becoming murkier. This as Action SA has yet to decide on its action should the democrats insist on their candidate.