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The ANC-led coalition that has taken control of Johannesburg is bad, bad news for ratepayers. But simply rolling over for Gayton McKenzie and the PA's demands would have been a poor call by the multiparty coalition, writes Pieter du Toit.
The collapse of the multiparty coalition in Johannesburg – replaced by an ANC-led one – showed up the deep fault-lines between parties, differing approaches to governance and the enormous difficulty in setting up a functioning government.
The coalition's minority government, with the DA's Mpho Phalatse as mayor, supported by ActionSA, the Freedom Front Plus, ACDP, IFP, Cope and the United Independent Movement, was ousted last week after negotiations to allow the Patriotic Alliance (PA) to take up two seats on the mayoral committee failed. The DA refused the PA's demands – which were strongly supported by ActionSA and the Freedom Front Plus – to take charge of two mayoral committee positions. The PA promptly withdrew and, for the second time in four months, aligned itself with the ANC.
