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POLITICS
Former Johannesburg Mayor Herman Mashaba, who is set to launch his political party on Saturday, has credited the ANC’s dismal performance of the country as the straw that broke the camel’s back.
He said that how the ruling party has particularly handled the Covid-19 pandemic opened the door for his party to win over masses of discouraged citizens.
During a virtual pre-launch press conference on Thursday, Mashaba COO Funzi Ngobeni, who also broke the DA’s rank and joined Mashaba, said his new party has been seen as a viable new alternative.
The organization, which has not yet been formally launched, has already managed to collect 60,000 signatures from volunteers.
“The sense of change of momentum towards our new match over the last two months has been quite incredible. South Africans are furious at the abuse of this national state of disaster for the looting of public funds, ”Mashaba said.
He added that what made the current corruption allegations even scarier was that they were happening “at a time when our economy is recovering from the world’s toughest blockade.”
We will propose real solutions to South Africa’s problems. We will avoid the political pettiness and punctuation that has become part of our country’s politics.
Herman Mashaba
“South Africans are losing their jobs, their businesses while our government behaves like a criminal syndicate,” Mashaba said.
He said that while the timing of the latest ANC corruption scandal was unpleasant for South Africans, his party’s launch “could not have come at a better time.”
“South Africans, now more than ever, want a real alternative to the ANC. They want a party that can garner broad support, beyond the narrow focus of our current opposition parties. They want a way out of the mess we’re in, ”Mashaba said.
Read | Herman Mashaba: Joburg ANC was as bad as Jacob Zuma
He said that the match he will unveil on Saturday “will be the hope that South Africans are looking for.”
“We will propose real solutions to South Africa’s problems. We will avoid the political pettiness and punctuation that has become part of our country’s politics. We will exist for the soul’s reason to overthrow the ANC and provide an alternative, a better future for our country, ”he said.
What distinguishes Mashaba’s party?
According to Mashaba, his party was financed mainly out of his own pocket, so his policies would not be influenced by outside forces.
I’ll be party chairman and name Michael Beaumont [who served as the People’s Dialogue chief executive] to serve as the national president of the new party.
Herman Mashaba
He also assured South Africans that the party’s constitution does not allow members to do business with the state to prevent what happened under the leadership of the ANC.
Mashaba said that all its leaders would be nominated by the party structures.
Party leadership
The former mayor also announced the leadership of the party that will be launched on Saturday.
“I will be president of the party and I will name Michael Beaumont [who served as the People’s Dialogue chief executive] to serve as the national president of the new party. Lerato Ngobeni, former director of programs at the Thabo Mbeki African Leadership Institute, will act as national spokesperson.
Funzi Ngobeni, André Coetzee and Paul Boughey will be part of the leadership team. They have been with the organization since its formative days. Other members are Makhosi Khoza, Vytjie Mentor, Lieutenant General Deliwe de Lange, David Tembe and Vivien Law.
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