Herman Mashaba Tenders Resignation As Joburg Councillor, Wants ActionSA to Beat ANC in 2024

• Herman Mashaba has resigned from his role as Johannesburg councillor just three months after being elected
• Mashaba said he wants to work on growing his party, ActionSA, into a top competitor for the African National Congress in 2024
• Bongani Baloyi from the Democratic Alliance has recently joined ActionSA as part of the party's growth plans

JOHANNESBURG - ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba announced today (31 January) that he has resigned as councillor for Johannesburg to focus on building up his party to a level where it can take on the African National Congress (ANC) in the 2024 election.

Mashaba's resignation comes just three months after being sworn into the role in November. However, the ActionSA leader feels that his party is his top priority now and requires all of his time and focus.

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Mashaba's plans for the future

In his announcement, Mashaba said that he will work to grow ActionSA at a provincial level across South Africa. Currently, Gauteng is the province that supports the party the most.

ActionSA recently recruited Bongani Baloyi from the Democratic Alliance (DA). According to News24, the party was founded by a number of ex-DA members in 2020, Mashaba included.

Mashaba's goal for 2022 is to create leadership structures in ActionSA which develop a strong political base that can be built upon before the national election in 2024.

Reactions to Mashaba's resignation from the Johannesburg Municipality

@divah_dollar asked:

"How come you were a councillor and a president of the party sametime?"

@BongMelz remarked:

"Expand to all the provinces. Maybe we’ll come on board. Who knows!"

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@NatsDK said:

"Can’t wait for you to visit Limpopo to grow ActionSA together across all provinces!"

@Batebang asked:

"Did Joburg people not vote for you based on the fact that you were eyeing the mayoral seat and could potentially continue from where you left off last time? Why the change of heart?"

@IvoVegter shared:

"I guess whipping up xenophobic hatred is a full-time job."

Jansen and Mashaba argue about employing foreigners

In earlier news about Mashaba, on Saturday (29 January), ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba took to social media to express his surprise that the Department of Basic Education has senior employees from neighbouring African countries and said that he would investigate the matter further in light of relatively high unemployment levels in South Africa.

An honorary education professor at the University of the Witwatersrand (Wits), Jonathan Jansen, called out Mashaba's statement and said he is a "disgraceful leader." Jansen believes that Mashaba's remarks champion xenophobia and embarrass South Africans.

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Mashaba responded to Jansen's criticism by saying that he thinks the professor should not be supporting senior positions for foreigners and should endorse campaigns that promote employment opportunities for South African citizens.

Source: Briefly News