Al Jama-ah councillor Thapelo Amad says his decision to resign as executive mayor of Johannesburg on the eve of a no-confidence vote against him was largely influenced by a desire not to see the coalition that elected him to office collapse under his watch.
Amad, council speaker Colleen Makhubele and chief whip of council Sthembiso Zungu were all set to face no-confidence motions in council on Tuesday, but due to Amad’s resignation on Monday night, Makhubele postponed the scheduled sitting.
In a memorandum to councillors, Makhubele said an extraordinary council meeting will be held on May 2 to elect a new mayor for the city.
Amad was voted in as Joburg mayor after the removal of DA councillor Mpho Phalatse through a no-confidence vote in January.
In an interview with Business Day on Tuesday, Amad, whose Al Jama-ah party holds three seats in the 270-seat Joburg council, said his successes include the passing by council of a R2bn loan facility from the Development Bank of SA to help fund service delivery initiatives in the metro.
In March, he opened the R66m Bophelong Clinic in Doornkop, Soweto; and “stabilised” the metro’s administration through the appointment of city manager Floyd Brink and instituting processes for the recruitment of a group CFO and COO, Amad said.
For a long time the city “couldn’t even get grant funding because it was a high-risk institution as there were no accounting officers”.
Media narrative
He noted that during his almost 100-day tenure there were no protests over service delivery or by service providers demanding payment. The city’s parastatals, such as the Joburg Roads Agency, were on duty daily fixing the road infrastructure, he said.
“There are a lot of things we have done during this two months we were in office,” he said. “The media narrative is one thing, but the people on the ground felt the impact of what we have done. Mpho Phalatse did not even open a new clinic. There is no plaque with her name in the metro.”
The DA, ActionSA and PA however, wanted Amad to resign after his recent remarks that he had secured the prospect of a R9.5bn loan facility to fund service delivery in SA’s biggest metro.
Gayton McKenzie — leader of the PA, which is part of the ruling coalition with the ANC, EFF, COPE, UDM, PAC, ATM, AIC, PA, APC and GOOD — had said Amad needed to go because he had caused much damage in the city.
“My mandate was to salvage the city from a brutal [DA-led] multiparty government. The black people were oppressed under their government, service delivery was interrupted,” Amad said.
The DA and ActionSA, which both sponsored the motion against Amad, believe it would have succeeded.
“I can’t change the narrative against me or the public opinion. I think it was the right time for me to bow out and allow other leaders to hold the fort going into the 2026 local government elections,” the former mayor said.
“I think I held my head high. You wouldn’t want the city to collapse under your watch after having salvaged it from the multiparty government.”
Coalition intact
EFF national spokesperson Sinawo Tambo could not be reached immediately for comment.
ANC Gauteng chair and premier Panyaza Lesufi said the coalition remains intact and will defend motions against the speaker and chief whip of council. “In the next few days, the government of local unity will meet to submit a new name as our candidate for the position of mayor,” Lesufi said.
DA Gauteng chair Fred Nel said it welcomes Amad’s resignation as he fell “far short of the requirements for the position”.
Nel said the DA will nominate Phalatse as its mayoral candidate as she has a “proven track record and an understanding of the needs of the people of Johannesburg”.
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