Stevens Mokgalapa resigns from DA

By Citizen Reporter

Former Tshwane councillor and mayor Stevens Mokgalapa has resigned from the DA, the party confirmed on Friday.

Mokgalapa resigned in February as Tshwane mayor this year in the wake of a sex scandal.

He is the latest member to leave the party after former DA Gauteng leader John Moodey resigned last month, abandoning his leadership race for the party’s top job in the process.

Former DA leader Mmusi Maimane and former Joburg mayor Herman Mashaba resigned from the party in 2019.

DA Gauteng provincial chairperson Mike Moriarty noted Mokgalapa’s resignation.

“We thank Mr Mokgalapa for his service and wish him well with his future endeavours, whatever they may be. The DA will continue its pursuit of freedom, fairness and opportunity for the people of Tshwane and South Africa,” he said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Tshwane is expected to hold its first council meeting in almost eight months with the aim to elect a new mayor.

This is according to Tshwane speaker Katlego Mathebe who resumed her duties on Tuesday following an intense legal battle that was borne out of the Gauteng executive council’s decision to dissolve the municipal council in March.

The decision saw Tshwane remain politically leaderless for most of the year. The provincial government appointed administrators to run the capital city while a legal battle with the DA ensued.

Mathebe, along with the rest of the council, will return to duty and receive backdated pay following a judgement handed down by the Supreme Court of Appeal.

The appellate court dismissed the province’s appeal which sought to delay the enforcement of a high court ruling which reversed the decision to dissolve the council.

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