The parties have been engaged in a bitter war of words, with the DA claiming that the ANC is engaged in a plan to bribe their councillors to resign.

The ANC on the other hand claims DA councillors are stepping down from their positions because of rampant racism in the party.

Next Wednesday's by-election follows the resignation of ward councillor Catherine Booysen, who joined the ANC. Her former party claims she was bribed to resign and also promised money and positions.

This, the DA says, is part of the ANC's "project reclaim" to wrest control of municipalities in the DA-dominated Western Cape.

DA provincial spokeswoman Mart-Marie Haasbroek said: "The ANC is trying to bribe DA ward councillors to resign their seats with promises of positions, money and other compensation to try take control of municipalities where the voters have rejected them because of their track record of failed delivery."

She said they were confident of winning.

"We are doing everything to convey the DA's message of an open opportunity society for all and remind the voters of our proven track record of good service delivery in Theewaterskloof municipality, versus the closed crony society of the ANC and its record of poor service delivery," she said.

Asked whether politics had played a role in the protest at Umyezo Wama Apile Combined School in the town, Haasbroek said: "It is unfortunate that some individuals are using the situation to drive their own political agenda after all the pupils' grievances have been addressed."

ANC regional secretary in Overberg, Themba Tebele, yesterday shot down all accusations by the DA.

"The real situation is that many DA councillors are unhappy and leaving the party because of racism," Tebele said. They were also not desperate for new members, he added.

Tebele said they were ready and also confident of winning the ward next Wednesday.

Haasbroek said: "The black townships in Grabouw are ANC strongholds. We are intensifying our door-to-door campaign in coloured areas."

Tebele also said politics did not play a role in the dispute between residents and the department of education regarding the Umyezo Wama Apile Combined School.

"The reality is that overcrowding at the school had affected the pupils and there was no effective learning and teaching there."

He added that the problem resulted in a visit to the school early this month by the ANC provincial leadership in a bid to resolve the dispute.

Booysen said: "I was never part of any project reclaim.

"We don't have a project reclaim in the ANC. I left the DA due to racism."

Comments

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Sat May 25 21:56:23 SAST 2013 ::

Apr 17, 2012

Makhosini0408

Who is fooling who here? bribery or racism

Come on you two, play nicely please.
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Apr 17, 2012

LOA

Stop fighting over k@k, and do your jobs. dammitt man.... The people need progress, support and services not he said she said crapola...
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Apr 17, 2012

Sgandy

I am a staunch DA supporter and honestly I wouldn't be happy to be led by a Councilor who can be bribed..what the DA should do is let those immoral councilors to join the ANC after all they seem to have same fibre as them,greed,self-enrichment and obsessed with high positions..let them go they are not worth our party..they will tarnish our party.
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Apr 17, 2012

MommaC

Politicians and their unsubstantiated claims again.
Should be very interesting to see if the DA has made enough tangible difference in those wards to keep them or if they are just hot air
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Apr 17, 2012

Shredder

I d o n ' t b u y t h e b r i b e r y s t o r y, t h e DA i s l y i n g t h e r e.

Calling on WebAdmin Calling on WebAdmin. Please come to our rescue. What is wrong with that little sentence up there that I get the GURU? Are we getting the guru at random or what?
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Apr 17, 2012

rasefatee

door-to-door campaign in coloured areas
=====================================
door-to-door only when u want my vote fokoff u come to my house will kick the dusty asss
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Apr 17, 2012

hulas

Da will easily win this ward ,our people knows that anc is corrupt,they wont vote for them.Voters don't vote for individuals but for a party.
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Apr 17, 2012

Dzel

A prot.est over inad.equate edu.cation facile.ties in Zille’s g.od cho.sen provi.nce of Western Cape?

These kids must be Profe.ssional Bla.cks who don’t underst.and bla.ck sch.ools are suppose.ed to be overcrowded. The councillor.rs who complain of raci.sm are dreaming; there is no raci.sm in Cape Town, no raci.sm in the Western Cape and in the DA. Anyone who clai.ms otherwise must be moti.vated by jealo.usy and bitter.ness, the DA can do no wro.ng. It is impo.ssible for anyone to complain of raci.sm within the pa.rty anyone who does has a ch.ip on their shoulder.

On a serious n.ote, how can a standing cou.ncillor of the DA be bri.bed with posi.tions and money when they already are counc.illors and are being pa.id a sal.ary? Again the DA wa.nts to pretend that raci.sm is a bla.ck man’s falla.cy and does not deserve to be addressed and when people are fed up they act su.rprised. How can a par.ty so out of touc.h with rea.lity claim to be the best placed party to represent our inter.ests?

Should they los.e the vot.e I am pretty certain they will be accusing the ANC of bribing vot.ers, nothing is ever their fa.ult cause the DA is never wrong

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Apr 17, 2012

Sinudeity

Shredder - The word buuy.
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Apr 17, 2012

Shredder

@Sowetan, I heard Mme ma Molewa say that the government needs R500 billion rands for water infrastructure. The treasury can only afford half of that, so meaning that water prices are going to be high. It looks like for you that is not important to publish.
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