HERMAN MASHABA

ActionSA and the EFF played an important role in the DA minority government victories in Gauteng. Photo: Twitter / @Action4SA

Mashaba refuses to negotiate with DA unless EFF is present

‘One thing I want the DA to understand, our vote is not a gift to them,’ said Herman Mashaba. He said the EFF must be present in any talks between parties.

HERMAN MASHABA

ActionSA and the EFF played an important role in the DA minority government victories in Gauteng. Photo: Twitter / @Action4SA

ActionSA president and former DA mayor Herman Mashaba said his party would not engage the DA in coalition talks unless the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) were part of the discussions. This comes after the DA was voted into power in all three Gauteng metros despite not having coalition agreements in place in Ekurhuleni and Johannesburg.

MASHABA LAYS DOWN THE RULES FOR NEXT MEETING

The DA previously said it would not enter a coalition with the EFF. ActionSA’s cosy relationship with the Julius Malema-led party also left the DA wary about working with them.

On Monday, both the EFF and ActionSA offered the DA outside support and helped them beat the ANC candidates and secure the positions of mayor and speaker in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni.

 On Tuesday, the DA’s Randall Williams was elected mayor in Tshwane. The ANC did not vote for any office bearers and did not nominate their own after the beating the party took on Monday following the surprise move by Mashaba and Malema.

“One thing I want the DA to understand, our vote is not a gift to them. The vote that we are going to give them today, we gave them yesterday, is not a gift,” said Mashaba to the media in Tshwane on Tuesday afternoon, according to TimesLive.

“It is our right to protect this country and not really be abused by anyone. And I want the DA to really understand that if they want to talk to us as ActionSA, please call us with the EFF — because it’s not only ActionSA that voted for you,” said Mashaba.

Mashaba claims the DA has negotiated in bad faith over the last few weeks and that he did not trust them enough to talk to them alone, which is why he wants the EFF present. He also said that he wants their next meeting to be recorded.

The DA minority governments will struggle to get the job done unless they can win the support of their fellow parties. Coalition talks appear to be firmly back on the table, as cutting a deal is the most efficient way to govern.

Mashaba told EWN that he was not setting the DA minority the DA for failure – as has been asserted – but rather the parties were giving them an opportunity to govern.

READ: ‘Floyd, it’s Herman’: Here’s how one phone call sank the ANC this week