I refer to the letter “Political U-turn” (The Herald, July 27). The ill-founded remarks published therein necessitate that I assist the writer to better understand the political dynamic in the Nelson Mandela Bay council and the strategic outlook of the Abantu Integrity Movement (AIM), the organisation I represent.
It is a matter of record that both the DA and ANC hold 48 seats on the council.
To reach the threshold of 60+1 seats in order to govern they have to form a coalition with the smaller parties.
Our strategic approach as AIM is that we will work with any party that prioritises effective service delivery to the people of Nelson Mandela Bay.
This unfortunately lands us in the age-old adage of “having to choose between two devils”.
If we choose to go with the DA we will cop flak for working with a “white, racist party”.
If we go with the ANC we will be lambasted by the other half of the political alignment (where Gordon Upton appears to be located) for working with the party of “state corruption”.
Our answer to that is AIM is not a party of national politics.
It is a party of local potholes.
In our view local government is not about political dogma.
It is about the efficient delivery of municipal services to residents and the business community to create an environment that is conducive to catalysing entrepreneurial endeavours to achieve economic prosperity for the benefit of the greater community.
In that regard AIM accepted the invitation to serve in the DA-led coalition when then incoming mayor Retief Odendaal promised us that the focus would be on improving service delivery.
We served in that coalition diligently and with demonstrable success until it was voted out of office in 2023.
Similarly, when the ANC invited AIM to join their coalition promising to prioritise service delivery we took them at their word and joined.
The record will show that when things did not turn out as promised we took a decision to leave the coalition.
In his letter, Upton characterises that organisational step and subsequent action we have taken against the mayor as Khusta Jack “trying to be relevant”.
I’ve spent much of my youth and adult life involved in community activism, voluntarily fighting for the rights of ordinary people in the spirit of non-racialism.
My guiding personal philosophy in life is to be able to say I may not have succeeded but at least I tried. Rather than say I never failed because I never tried.
At this stage in my life, I have neither the reason nor the inclination to be trying to be “relevant”.
Councillor Khusta Jack, Abantu Integrity Movement, Nelson Mandela Bay
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