JOHANNESBURG – African National Congress (ANC) councillor Eugene Johnson has been elected as the new Speaker of the Nelson Mandela Bay municipality.
Johnson secured 62 of the votes through a secret ballot.
The former mayor of the Eastern Cape metro beat the Democratic Alliance (DA)'s Rano Keysor by 11 votes.
Earlier on Friday, the DA's Retief Odendaal was also removed as mayor through a motion of no confidence.
The ANC's provincial spokesperson, Gift Ngqondi, said that his removal was welcomed as he had failed to prioritise service delivery in townships.
"Street lights are not working and there are potholes. We hope that the new leadership will make sure that they prioritise these."
The shake-up in the municipality's executive is being led by the ANC-EFF coalition.
A new mayor is expected to be elected on Friday night.
Artmotion S.Africa
