Former Democratic Alliance (DA) Midvaal mayor Bongani Baloyi has joined ActionSA.
ActionSA, headed by Herman Mashaba, made the announcement during a press briefing in Johannesburg on Monday.
Bongani Baloyi, who served two terms as mayor, quit the DA last month, saying that he was leaving on his own terms. He had promised that he would give details of his future plans in the new year.
There was much speculation regarding his next move after what could be considered a good run as the mayor of the Midvaal Local Municipality in Gauteng. The municipality was ranked as one of the best performing municipalities in the country.
Bongani Baloyi was largely credited for its rise when he was elected mayor in 2013 at the age of 26.
He was one of the youngest elected mayors in the country when he was appointed.
Addressing a media briefing, Baloyi said he was very excited and enthused by his latest political move.
He also wanted to set the record straight that his joining ActionSA did not mean that he was having a bitter spat with his former political home.
“From the outset, I want to state that my joining ActionSA is not out of anger or disappointment. It is actually because of the hope they [ActionSA] invoke in me,” he said.
He added that he was proud of his record as a DA member and his work at the Midvaal municipality.
“We have one enemy, and that is the African National Congress,” he added.
“Our country needs to be rescued and it’s for the capable South Africans to say we will not be despondent any longer. We are going to step up and get into the ring and fight for a South Africa that can deliver a prosperous future for all,” he said.
Bongani Baloyi No The First Former DA Member To Join ActionSA
Baloyi joins several former DA members who chose ActionSA as a political alternative. The party’s leader, Herman Mashaba, as well as John Moodey and Beaumont are former DA members.
Mashaba spoke boastfully of Baloyi, and said his 10-year record in politics would help boost the party.
The ActionSA leader said that Baloyi would be appointed to serve on one of the party’s highest bodies – the senate.
He’s already being touted as ActionSA’s 2024 Gauteng premier candidate.
Former MidVaal mayor, Bongani Baloyi, has joined ActionSA. Baloyi became SA’s youngest Mayor, at just 26, in 2013. He served two terms as MidVaal mayor, with a record of seven consecutive clean audits. #DStv403 #eNCA pic.twitter.com/kJPJyip0DZ
— eNCA (@eNCA) January 24, 2022