Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi has retained his position after a motion of no confidence brought by the Democratic Alliance (DA) was defeated in the provincial legislature. The motion received only 24 votes in favor, while 54 voted against it.
The motion followed a finding by the Public Protector that Lesufi had illegally established the Gauteng Crime Prevention Wardens, a community safety program known as “Amapanyaza.” Lesufi has since announced the program is being disbanded, with some wardens to be retrained as traffic officers.
The African National Congress (ANC), Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), and MK Party united to defeat the motion. An ANC representative defended Lesufi as an innovative leader, while opposition parties criticized the DA’s motion as politically motivated.
The DA maintained that Lesufi acted outside the law and has failed to address key issues including corruption, infrastructure problems, and service delivery challenges in Gauteng municipalities.