Dan Plato, the former Cape Town mayor and Mayco member for community safety, has swopped the Democratic Alliance (DA) for the People’s Movement for Change (PMC).
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Plato announced that he joined the new party alongside former DA politician Ayesha Abrahams in a PMC statement. He cited concerns that the DA has strayed from its initial mission to promote the interests of the underprivileged and working class.
‘The DA has moved away from its commitment to serving the needs of the most vulnerable in our society. The party seems to be stifling voices that do not align with a certain cabal, and critical outreach programmes designed to benefit the poor are being cancelled in the City of Cape Town and Western Cape government,’ he said.
He also added that he was disappointed with the party’s stance on the war in Gaza.
‘The DA’s suppression of pro-Palestine voices within the party is deeply troubling. This stifling of diverse opinions not only contradicts the principles of justice and equality.’
‘As someone dedicated to upholding the rights of all, I believe in fostering open dialogue on critical global issues, and the DA’s current stance on the Palestinian question is incompatible with those values.’
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Plato served as the mayor of Cape Town from 2009 to 2011, and then again from 2018 to 2021. He is a former National Party councillor and was a member of the Western Cape legislature for the DA at the time of his resignation.
According to the Daily Maverick, rumours of his resignation started circulating on Tuesday when DA insiders confirmed that the party would not include him on the party list to return to the provincial legislature following the upcoming elections.
Several high-profile members, including Ghaleb Cachalia and Khume Ramulifho, also recently left the party. However, DA leader John Steenhuisen dismissed the resignations as a ‘silly season’.
‘People come and go, it is the nature of the game. Any political system can be characterised by people who come and go,’ he told the Daily Maverick.
‘We have senior black leaders who are pulling their weight and doing the work and are there because of their excellence — people like [DA Chief Whip] Siviwe [Gwarube] and DA [spokesperson and second deputy federal chair] Solly [Malatsi], people like [MP] Luyolo Mphithi and Mimmy Gondwe.’
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At first, Plato faced opposition from leaders within the DA when they rejected his appointment as the mayor of Cape Town in 2021. According to sources within the DA, the 63-year-old was urged not to vie for the mayoral candidate position but to opt for a seat in the provincial legislature, which he refused.
Following this, he lost the internal contest to the current mayor, Geordin Hill-Lewis. With the support of some senior DA members, Plato then filled the provincial legislature seat of Bonginkosi Madikizela, who resigned in 2021 after the Daily Maverick revealed that he did not hold a BCom degree as he had claimed.
Plato also stated that he was a ‘caretaker mayor’ who entered office during the middle of a term and that he wanted a full term to implement his plans for the City.
Furthermore, DA insiders note that Plato knew he did not make the party list to return to the provincial legislature. However, he denied this and stated that party lists had not been made public yet.
Tertius Simmers, the leader of the DA in the Western Cape, accepted his resignation. ‘We thank him for his years of service, both to the DA and at different levels of government. We wish him well in his endeavours.’
The leader of the PMC, former ANC Western Cape leader Marius Fransman, welcomed Plato to the party, noting that it was the right move for him as the party ‘unapologetically advocates for a free and liberated Palestine’.
‘Dan’s commitment to social justice aligns seamlessly with our values and we look forward to working together to put people at the centre of power.’
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Picture: City of Cape Town / Facebook
