Has ActionSA blundered?

WHEN Herman Mashaba became the Joburg executive mayor, he was a political novice. Mashaba was likened to Donald Trump.

That said, there were doubts that Mashaba would make a good mayor, given his lack of political experience. However, he surprised many by his sterling performance.

When he resigned as executive mayor, he was very popular with the Joburg residents. As a result, citizens were unhappy that he had resigned. But the move by Mashaba was well calculated and carefully planned.

Last year, he, together with the former DA members who had left with him, formed a political party called ActionSA.

ActionSA will be contesting local government elections for the first time in November. It is targeting metros such as Tshwane, Joburg and Nelson Mandela Bay.

The DA is worried about ActionSA eating away its voters. As a result, the official opposition leader, John Steenhuisen, is spending more time in Gauteng campaigning for the party. That’s how worried the political party is.

Having said that, Mashaba’s party has committed a blunder: it is contesting few municipalities. Yet the party has members all over the country. Those who want to vote for ActionSA in the municipalities that the party is not contesting are denied the opportunity to do so.

When a political party is new, voters tend to give it a chance. The following political parties are classic examples: the UDM, Cope and EFF. I’m sure voters would do the same for ActionSA.

This is a lost opportunity for the political organisation that might come back and haunt it in the national elections.

THABILE MANGE | Mogale City