Party leader Asad Gaffar said the movement was excited by its electoral performance, with nearly 12 300 voters backing it despite competing against established political parties.
The EThekwini Ratepayers Political Movement says its two council seats will allow it to take its fight for accountability and residents’ interests directly into the municipal council after years of challenging decisions from outside.
The newly formed party, established by local ratepayers, contested the local government elections to secure a platform to push for solutions to issues affecting ratepayers.
Party leader Asad Gaffar said the movement was excited by its electoral performance, with nearly 12 300 voters backing it despite competing against established political parties.
“We did better than most established parties. Almost 12 300 believed and supported us. The work starts today and we will deliver and ensure that the ratepayers’ voices are heard in council,” he said.
Gaffar said the two seats represented an important breakthrough for the movement, which had previously challenged municipal decisions from outside the council.
“We’ve been challenging much of the decisions from the outside and fighting the battle from outside is not equivalent to fighting it from the inside. We needed a seat at the table. People thought we were crazy and won’t get any seat, but look at us with two seats,” he said.
Although the movement had hoped to secure an outright majority, Gaffar said it was pleased to have gained representation and would now take its campaign into the council chamber.
He also hit back at political parties that had questioned or opposed the movement's decision to contest the elections, saying those who believed it was doing something unlawful should have taken action.
Gaffar said the movement remained committed to representing ratepayers, but would now have an opportunity to do so both outside and inside the council.
“They wanted the ratepayers to have doubt on us. Good luck to them,” he said.