By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Al Jama-ah councillor Kabelo Gwamanda has resigned as the executive mayor of Johannesburg, the municipality confirmed on Tuesday.
Gwamanda was elected as mayor in May last year with the support of the ANC, EFF, and several minority parties in the council.
He submitted his resignation to the Speaker of the Joburg Metropolitan Council on Tuesday, 13 August.
Gwamanda has been under fire, with different political parties and civil organisations calling for him to step down.
Unplanned power and water cuts, tariff hikes pushing up the cost of living and damaged infrastructure that goes unrepaired are some of the issues that prompted the calls for his resignation.
He said in the letter: “As the youngest mayor of Joburg, I’m humbled by the opportunity to have led the city and to have stabilised it financially and administratively following the collapse of the multi-party coalition government.
“I’m pleased that we managed to place good governance on course and achieved the best audit outcomes witnessed by the city in years.”
Gwamanda said he would continue to serve the people of Joburg as a councillor and will forever cherish the experience in his tenure as the mayor.
“My story is one I am hopeful will continue to inspire many an African child from our city that against deprivation, isolation, social and political exclusion and with the absence of friends and peers in the corporate and media hierarchy, one can live and rise on the noble cause of changing the conditions of the poor,” he said.
Gwamanda, representing Al Jama-ah, which holds only three seats in the 270-seat council, serves at the discretion of the ANC.
Fullview understands Gwamanda will be replaced by ANC regional chair Dada Morero, who currently serves as the finance MMC for the city.
On numerous occasions, the ANC national headquarters has said that as the biggest party in the council, it should hold the mayoralty.
The ANC has 91 seats in the metro council, with ActionSA holding 44 seats and the EFF 29. Smaller parties such as the Patriotic Alliance (PA), IFP, and others also play critical roles in the council’s balance of power.
Gwamanda was the ninth mayor of Joburg since 2016. The eight to date are: Parks Tau (2016), Herman Mashaba (2016/19), Geoff Makhubo (2020/21), Mpho Moerane (2021), Jolidee Matongo (2021), Mpho Phalatse (2021/22), Dada Morero (2022) and Thapelo Amad (2023).