FF Plus chooses Max for mayor

THE Freedom Front Plus has nominated former Western Cape provincial police commissioner Lennit Max as its mayoral candidate for the City of Cape Town and sitting councillor Erica Botha-Rossouw as its candidate for deputy mayor.

Max has previously been a member of the DA, for which he served as the province’s Community Safety MEC. He was also a DA MP, and served as the party’s deputy spokesperson on correctional services.

His political party journey began when he became a member of the now defunct Independent Democrats, which was led by the Good party’s Patricia De Lille, now Public Works and Infrastructure minister in the Cabinet.

Defending his move to the FF Plus, which took place in August this year, Max said he was free to switch parties in the same way as voters changed their minds about who to vote for. “I will never consider a T-shirt of a political party as something to keep me from service delivery. In this case, I will proudly wear a FF Plus T-shirt.”

During a news conference to introduce Max, Botha-Rossouw and candidates on the FF Plus party list, FF Plus MP and provincial leader Corné Mulder said: “It is important that the people who occupy leadership positions are familiar with the problems on local government level. This is so that they can ensure that service delivery is provided effectively and that the people who pay for those services get value for their money.”

FF Plus leader Pieter Groenewald said the party would consider entering coalitions with other parties after the elections.

Meanwhile

EFF provincial chairperson Melikhaya Xego said the party will unveil its manifesto for the election on Sunday.

Speaking about the party’s strategy for the polls, Xego said: “We are aware of the fact that the majority of voters are a bit circumspect about our militant and radical approach to issues affecting them. In the political situation we find ourselves in, there is no other way than to approach racism, inequality and poverty head-on.”

Xego said the EFF had candidates in 406 wards across the province for the election, and managed to meet the Electoral Commission of SA’s candidate registration deadline.