Little excitement as DA mayor sings
405 DA leader in the Tlokwe manucipality Annette Combrinck joins her supporters in a song and dance during her party's walkabout at a taxi rank in Potchefstroom in North west province. 110713 Picture: Boxer Ngwenya 405 DA leader in the Tlokwe manucipality Annette Combrinck joins her supporters in a song and dance during her party's walkabout at a taxi rank in Potchefstroom in North west province. 110713 Picture: Boxer Ngwenya
Johannesburg - The DA received a lukewarm reception on Thursday during a walkabout at a Tlokwe, North West, taxi rank while the ANC attacked “certain sections” for not being transformed.
North West ANC chairman Supra Mahumapelo said residents had complained that “certain sections” of Tlokwe were against transformation during an earlier walkabout at the same taxi rank.
Mahumapelo singled out the North West University (NWU) Potchefstroom campus as a hotbed for the anti-ANC attitude and a place where transformation was yet to be realised.
“The agenda to destabilise the ANC (emanates) from the NWU,” he said.
The DA’s Professor Annette Combrink, recently elected to replace the ANC’s Maphetle Maphetle as Tlokwe mayor, is a retired NWU lecturer.
The university’s spokesman, Louis Jacobs, said the allegations were not only unfounded but also untrue. “For example, the Potchefstroom campus currently has just over 51 000 students, of which only just over 17 000 are white,” he said.
“With regard to the allegations made in connection with the recent political developments in the Tlokwe Municipality, these are also completely devoid of any truth. The NWU maintains a very strong position of not getting involved in political activities, and especially not local politics.”
Jacobs said only three of the 52 Tlokwe council members worked for NWU.
“Although she (Combrink) was the rector of the Potchefstroom campus of the NWU, she retired and is no longer a permanent staff member of the NWU,” he said.
Mahumapelo said the ANC would turn its focus on the university after complaints were raised on black students’ admission as well as alleged biased procurement processes where only white-owned businesses were benefiting. “There are allegations of black students at NWU who are still under oppression. Afrikaans is still being used as if it’s the only language… why don’t we have all other languages?” he said.
“The people of Tlokwe are saying the economy here is still controlled by a few white people. We will take this matter of resistance to transformation head-on.”
Earlier, DA national spokesman Mmusi Maimane and Combrink had a tough time trying to get something out of residents to whom Maimane had posed the question, “What is really happening in Tlokwe?”
A few made brief stops to complain about housing and service delivery, while others walked away and showed little interest as a group of DA leaders and members walked around the taxi rank.
Simultaneously, one of two councillors who survived the chop from the ANC after attending the disciplinary hearing last week apologised publicly on Thursday.
Desmond Carolous seemed in a sombre mood as he read out a statement in front of the media.
“I have pleaded guilty for embarrassment I caused the ANC… I regret my conduct but I’m willing to correct it,” he said.
poloko.tau@inl.co.za
The Star