MORERO GAINS MAYORAL TRACTION AGAINST ZILLE

Dada's appeal among township voters, especially in Soweto, is growing

- SIFISO MAHLANGU

DA's federal council chairperson Helen Zille said the ANC or DA could fix the problems in the City of Johannesburg if given majority votes.

(WERNER BEUKES SAPA)

THE battle for Johannesburg's mayorship intensifies, Dada Morero is emerging as a formidable challenger to the Democratic Alliance's Helen Zille.

Morero’s appeal among township voters, especially in Soweto, is growing, fuelled by critiques of the DA’s performance in poor areas and mounting frustration over the party’s silence on Gaza.

The DA is under fire for what many locals and opposition figures call neglect in impoverished areas in the Western Cape. Earlier this year, ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile visited townships such as Gugulethu and Khayelitsha, pointing to “filthy streets”, overflowing rubbish heaps and inadequate municipal services. He accused the DA government of ignoring these communities.

Helen Zille responded forcefully, calling Mashatile’s claims “bulls**t” and insisting that the DA does more for poorer neighbourhoods than for affluent ones like Camps Bay.