Rise Mzansi National Chairperson Vuyiswa Ramokgopa has described the unusual move whereby a member of her party joined GOOD Party caucus as a councillor in the City of Cape Town as a commitment to cement their alliance.
Ramokgopa said this move was a signal to both parties’ possible merger which sought to realign the social democratic centre of South African politics.
“The 2024 election outcome has given a decisive line of march from the electorate that South Africans need reconfiguration of the political landscape. It is clear that political parties can no longer work in silos, when the country is in dire need of parties and a government that responds to socio-economic demands people have.
“The formation of the Government of National Unity (GNU) is further testament to this. No single party can claim to be the leader of the people of South Africa. At its announcement in April 2023, RISE Mzansi emphasised the need to reset South Africa’s politics and do away with tired old establishment politics that had failed the people of our country.
“One of the bold pronouncements was the need to build a strong centre anchored on social democracy in South African politics,” she said.
She said both parties agreed to continue to engage with each other with the objective of seeking convergence of social democratic parties and individuals in South Africa.
“The parties agree that these engagements will not necessarily be exclusive to GOOD and RISE but will, or may, include other parties, organisations and individuals.
“As RISE Mzansi, we have no doubt that GOOD has secured itself a competent and good councillor in Notywala. He is as well decorated in the social justice movement space as he is in his academic and intellectual pursuits.
“Having been our provincial premier candidate, Notywala has gained a wider perspective on the issues affecting the residents of the City of Cape Town from different walks of life, in ways that extend beyond his traditional base of organising.”
Meanwhile, the GOOD Party said Notywala has taken up dual membership to legitimise the move.
Notywala is well-known for his social justice work in the city and was the face of RISE Mzansi’s campaign in the province for the May polls.
The GOOD Party has nine seats in the metro, with a vacancy owing to a councillor being axed after a disciplinary process.
The party’s Secretary General Brett Herron said GOOD approached Notywala directly about filling the seat.
But this was not to say the GOOD Party lacked suitable candidates.
“This is part of a process to try to find or strengthen the relationship between the parties and see where that leads. We don’t really have a predetermined outcome. It’s a good faith gesture in the context of engagements that took place before the 2024 elections and which we will continue after the elections,” Herron said.
He further said Notywala would be held to the same performance standard as its other councillors in terms of good conduct and abiding by caucus rules.
The Star