DA confident of taking control of Emfuleni after strong election showing
The DA is still awaiting the Independent Electoral Commission’s final calculations regarding proportional representation seats. Chabalala believes the party could ultimately secure between 60% and 70% of the total vote.
Mbali Hlophe
DA mayoral candidate for Emfuleni, Kingsol Chabalala. Photo: X/@Our_DA
X/@Our_DA
The Democratic Alliance is confident it has secured enough support to take control of the Emfuleni Local Municipality following a strong showing in the local government elections.
Speaking to Beyond the Headlines, DA mayoral candidate Kingsol Chabalala said the party’s campaign focused on connecting with communities and demonstrating that the DA could turn the municipality around.
“I think the strategy was simple. Connect with our communities, show our communities that the DA is on their side,” Chabalala said.
He said the party had also secured support by presenting voters with clear commitments to address the municipality’s challenges.
“I expected an outright majority, but did not expect the margin to be this huge,” he said.
The DA is still awaiting the Independent Electoral Commission’s final calculations regarding proportional representation seats. Chabalala believes the party could ultimately secure between 60% and 70% of the total vote.
“I think we are going to get anything between 60 and 70% of the total vote,” he said.
Chabalala said the combined performance of opposition parties was not enough to challenge the DA’s showing.
“I think we are going to shock a lot of people. I think this moment is history in the making,” he said.
Financial and skills audit planned
Should the DA take control of Emfuleni, Chabalala said its first priority would be to establish the financial position of the municipality.
“The first thing that we’re going to do when we get into the office, I think first we need to establish the cash flow of the municipality,” he said.
He said the party would also investigate infrastructure projects that had stalled and determine why they were not progressing.
Chabalala also announced plans for a skills audit of municipal employees, including an assessment of their qualifications.
“We’re also going to do an audit in relation to our employees in terms of qualifications,” he said.
He said the audit would help the incoming administration identify gaps and determine where the municipality needed to strengthen its capacity.
Contract reviews on the cards
Chabalala said existing municipal contracts with service providers would also come under scrutiny.
“We are also going to review all contracts that Emfuleni has with providers to see if they add value to the municipality or they don’t add value to the municipality,” he said.
The DA candidate said the party wanted to ensure that municipal resources were being used effectively and that residents received the services they were entitled to.
“Our aim is to give the Emfuleni residents a municipality that is going to deliver services to all our communities,” Chabalala said.
He added that the party wanted to “end the chaos” currently experienced by residents.
Rates and taxes
Addressing concerns over rates and taxes, Chabalala said residents who could afford to pay for municipal services would be expected to do so, while indigent households would receive relief in line with legislation.
“People need to pay for what they are consuming,” he said.
“But equally remember, we also have indigents within our communities, people who are living below the thresholds of the municipality. They are not going to pay services because the legislation dictates that indigents are not supposed to pay rates and taxes.”
Chabalala said the DA would focus on rebuilding confidence in the municipality and improving service delivery.
The final composition of the council will depend on the IEC’s conclusion of the PR seat allocation. If the DA secures an outright majority, it would mark a significant political shift in Emfuleni and give the party an opportunity to implement its proposed financial, administrative and service-delivery reforms