Pretoria - Seasoned Tshwane DA politician Hannes Coetzee has quit the party to join ActionSA because he “couldn’t stand the poor service delivery in the metro since 2016”.
Coetzee was yesterday unveiled by ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba as the party’s candidate to contest in the ward 96 by-election on May 5.
Mashaba described Coetzee as a great South African who was elected as the ward councillor for his ward in the third municipal elections.
He said Coetzee resigned from the DA because he believed the multiparty coalition that assumed office in 2016 failed to deliver change to his ward.
Ward 96, Mashaba said, had for years been plagued by the ongoing water crisis affecting people in Hammanskraal, pointing to the unreliable supply of electricity and roads that were falling apart.
Yesterday, people in the ward were left without electricity.
“People in these communities cannot sell their properties or live with dignity because of the smell of sewage from the Rooiwal Wastewater Treatment Plant,” Mashaba said.
He expressed confidence in Coetzee, saying: “Hannes’s candidature is another significant moment for ActionSA. It represents that we are a party that cannot only take high levels of support from the ANC but also attract people from across the spectrum in South Africa who are all driven by the need for action in their communities.”
Coetzee is a trained artisan with a track record in public and civil service dating back to 1988.
Mashaba said: “This moment is an important one for ActionSA. We are the party carrying momentum out of the 2021 local government elections and we see by-elections as opportunities to publicly continue this growth and momentum to 2024.”
Coetzee described himself as a man of action who put a plan in place if there is none.
He promised to make the City attend to Rooiwal treatment plant to ensure that people have access to drinkable water.
Pretoria News