Cape Times

West Coast councillor drops ANC for DA

THE ANC in the Western Cape says former member and councillor in the Matzikama Local Municipali­ty, Jan Koopman's move to the DA is motivated by “personal interests” and “financial guarantees”.

Koopman resigned from the party yesterday “after careful considerat­ion of what the DA has set out to do in Matzikama that his personal values and aspiration­s for his community are aligned with the DA's beliefs and objectives”, said DA provincial leader Tertuis Simmers said.

“Koopman resigned both his membership of the ANC and from his position as a councillor, as he is no longer willing to be part of ANC efforts to obstruct the progress that the municipali­ty is making.

“The DA in Matzikama welcomes councillor Koopman as a pioneer for his community.

“Since the DA-led coalition took over two years ago from the PA/ANC coalition, the municipali­ty has made enormous strides to fix internal systems and financiall­y save the municipali­ty from bankruptcy.

“This entailed difficult decisions that had to be made,” said Simmers and constituen­cy head Thomas Walters in a joint statement.

The ANC welcomed Koopman's resignatio­n, with West Coast acting regional secretary Immanuel Adams saying: “This resignatio­n comes as no surprise, given the mounting pressure from his constituen­cy due to his failure to credibly and efficientl­y perform his duties.

“Councillor Koopman's resignatio­n is a clear indication of the self-interest that has taken precedence over the well-being of the community he was entrusted to serve.

“We remain committed to restoring integrity, transparen­cy, and accountabi­lity to Klawer and the effected surroundin­g communitie­s in ward 6, and ensuring that the voices of the people are not silenced by those who seek to exploit public office for personal gain.”

The party said Koopman's resignatio­n will not deter its fight for a government that works for the people.

“We urge the voters to remain vigilant as we strive to rebuild trust in our institutio­ns.”

Koopman did not respond to requests for comment by deadline.