John Harvey
More than 300 ANC members in Mossel Bay have allegedly defected to the DA in the past week, citing a lack of service delivery on the part of the ruling party for their departure.
On Sunday alone, 150 ANC members from Ward 2 joined the opposition, while Ward 3 has already seen an exodus of a greater number of defectors in the past week, the DA claimed.
Wards 2 and 3 in Mossel Bay form a large part of the Kwanonqaba informal settlement, which is an ANC stronhold.
According to the DA's chairman for the Mossel Bay constituency Harry Levendal, residents who joined the DA at the weekend told DA councillors they wanted the same level of service delivery that people who lived in DA-led wards enjoyed.
"The residents feel DA councillors work for them and better represent their interests," he said.
"Residents say they do not trust their ANC councillors and no longer feel at home in the ANC. They said they could no longer tolerate the filthy streets and lack of basic service delivery in their ward."
The DA is currently in charge of 10 of the 14 Wards in Mossel Bay. Both the DA and the ANC have 6 Proportional Representation councillors here.
However ANC Southern Cape spokesman Putco Mapitiza lashed out at the DA and questioned its claim that so many had defected.
"The allegation by the DA that 300 members of the ANC have defected to the party is nothing by publicity stunt by a desperate party that is feeling the heat of people’s resolve to reclaim their dignity from the clutches of white domination," he said yesterday.
"It would have been interesting if the DA would have tell who these 300 members are, but we know that they will not to do this because there is no such a thing.
Mapitiza said it was "interesting" that the DA stated that black people from a black area were saying they should get the same services that were provided at the white areas.
"The DA has all along denied that they serve white people at the expense of black people, and today they unwittingly confirmed that known fact.
It is also a shame that the party that is I government not only in Mossel Bay, but in the province must go out beating its chest that unless the citizens of this country will only get acceptable services if they join the party. This is political blackmailing at it worst."
The DA in Mossel Bay will officially welcome the new members at a meeting on Saturday 27 April.
(Garden Route Media)
