Ex-DA MP says Phalatse ‘routinely excluded’ by party leadership

As the Democratic Alliance (DA) plans its next political move, in the wake of Mpho Phalatse being ousted as the mayor of the City of Johannesburg, a former MP has revealed that the party has been keeping her (Phalatse) in the dark about matters concerning her own government.

Phalatse was ousted through an ANC-sponsored motion of no confidence on Friday, 30 September 2022. This is despite approaching the High Court in Johannesburg, in a bid to prevent the council sitting from going ahead. The ANC’s Dada Morero was subsequently voted for as the next mayor for Joburg.

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WHY IS MPHO PHALATSE BEING KEPT IN THE DARK?

Now former DA MP Lindiwe Mazibuko says party leaders have been having “party negotiations” related to Mpho Phalatse’s own government, without even involving her.

“I am reliably told that [Mpho Phalatse] is routinely excluded from party negotiations about her own government, which are instead (mis)managed by DA’s leader and federal council chairman from Cape Town,” Mazibuko said on Twitter, in response to an article about Phalatse’s removal written by Daily Maverick.

I’m glad this angle is finally surfacing in the press. I am reliably told that @mphophalatse1 is routinely excluded from party negotiations about her own government, which are instead (mis)managed by DA’s leader and federal council chairman from Cape Town. https://t.co/pXllk9I5Ad

— Lindiwe Mazibuko (@LindiMazibuko) September 30, 2022

While any prominent DA figures are yet to respond to Mazibuko’s claim, the party’s John Steenhuisen said they were not taking Phalatse’s ousting lying down and would be approaching the courts.

“After months of efforts to destabilise coalitions across the country, today the ANC succeeded in seizing control of Johannesburg. I warned precisely a few weeks ago that this is what is transpiring in the background. The ANC’s desperation to get their hands on tenders and contracts from Johannesburg’s R76 billion budget is now clear for all to see,” he said.