Not only is Masuku the first deputy mayor of Joburg, but she is also the first female chairperson of the ANC in the city.
The MMC of Finance Loyiso Masuku has been appointed as the deputy mayor of the City of Johannesburg.
Masuku is Joburg’s first deputy mayor
Masuku was elected unposed during a council meeting on Thursday.
Masuku was supported by the ANC and its coalition partners. This includes the PA, Al Jama-ah and other minority parties.
She is expected to be sworn in on the same day.
The election was swift with no hitches, but the DA indicated that it was staying away from this election.
Masuku’s election means that the City of Johannesburg’s mayor and deputy mayor are both from the ANC.
Council is also expected to debate Mayor Dada Morero’s fitness to hold office on Thursday. This comes after Al Jama-ah and its partners in the minority caucus tabled a motion of no confidence against him.
Al Jama-ah had requested that the motion takes place through a secret ballot. It is unclear if the motion will still go ahead.
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Background
The Citizen understands that the deputy mayor position was formed to appease a faction of the ANC that wanted Morero to be removed as mayor.
This comes after he lost his position as the regional chairperson of the ANC in Johannesburg at a conference last year.
The ANC’s secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has insisted that there is no reason for Morero to be recalled in a year when the party is preparing for local government elections.
The ANC’s regional spokesperson Mantombi Nkosi told The Citizen on Wednesday that it has been negotiating with coalition partners to try and convince them to withdraw the motion.
The ANC’s coalition partners had complained that it would not be fair to have two ANC mayors while in a coalition with other political parties.
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