Rob Hersov's Counterblast to Ivo Vegter's Criticism on the PA's Political Maneuvering

In a fervent rebuttal to Ivo Vegter's commentary, Rob Hersov has staunchly defended Gayton McKenzie and the Patriotic Alliance (PA), marking clear his disdain for what he terms Vegter's lack of rigorous research and misrepresentation of facts concerning the PA's political engagement in South Africa.

Hersov takes aim at Vegter, initially pointing out a spelling error of McKenzie's name, a mistake he feels sets the tone for the inaccuracies to follow. He furthers his offense, citing Vegter's reliance on a disputed News24 article that was retracted after an ombudsman's directive – a detail he accuses Vegter of overlooking or intentionally ignoring.

The article in question portrayed McKenzie and the Patriotic Alliance at the center of financial management controversies, an allegation Hersov disputes, affirming the absence of any conclusive findings against McKenzie or the PA.

Contesting Vegter's take on the PA's performance in elections, Hersov corrects the misstated share of the national vote the PA had garnered in 2021, insisting on the accurate figure being 0.96%, not the 0.8% reported by Vegter. Hersov continues by addressing a series of factual inaccuracies regarding the PA's political control in various municipalities—positions Vegter attributed to the PA, such as mayoral and deputy mayoral roles in Prince Albert, Bitou, Koukamma, and an MMC position in Ekurhuleni, which Hersov states are simply false.

He alludes to the PA's successes in winning wards from the ANC in Kimberley and Johannesburg, using this to counter the implication of the PA being the ANC's "lapdog." Furthermore, he disputes Vegter's statements about the administration of Beaufort West, clarifying that the PA encountered a financially beleaguered municipality, yet effectively instituted a financial recovery plan under the PA mayor.

On the topic of betrayal sensed by the Democratic Alliance (DA) due to the PA's maneuvers in Johannesburg, Hersov emphasizes the PA's clear reasoning for its actions, which he claims were understood even by fellow coalition partners such as ActionSA and the Freedom Front Plus. He criticizes the DA's refusal to negotiate with the PA to non-ANC coalitions in Johannesburg despite multiple offers, accusing the DA of neglecting the city's governance.

Addressing Vegter's perspective on PA-induced staffing woes in Knysna, Hersov points out that the DA lost a legal battle against the council's new appointments, denoting their legality. He rejects the simplification of blaming the PA for all the municipality's problems, suggesting a more complex situation exists beyond the PA's ascension.

Concluding his retort, Hersov denounces Vegter's portrayal of McKenzie's prioritization of the PA's interests over the DA's as a form of extortion. He defends McKenzie's natural inclination to favor his party's agenda and criticizes the DA's seemingly uncompromising approach to coalition politics. Hersov argues that unless the DA can cooperate in a coalition-driven system, the political development in the country will stall, and they risk losing the "brown vote" as well as their hold in Western Cape.