ACTRESS and TV host Kuli Roberts has dropped out from running for councillor for ward 65 in Tshwane.
On Wednesday, 29 September, she was announced to be in the running under the African Transformation Movement (ATM), but unfortunately, the party released a statement saying she could no longer be a member or run for ward councillor.
The statement released on Sunday, 3 October read: “Due to unforeseen and confidential circumstances, it is no longer possible to have Nomakula Roberts as a member and ward councillor of the African Transformation Movement.”
“Ms Roberts had to step down both as a member and ward councillor candidate of the ATM,” it said.
ATM Gauteng provincial secretary Elliot Mabaso told the People’s Paper Kuli wasn’t formally a member of their party, which was why she couldn’t run under them.
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“When our volunteers going around the ward where Kuli stays, they entered her home and recruited her to join ATM. They gave her a stop order to sign and also indicated to her that there’s no ward councillor in that area,” Mabaso said.
“They persuaded her to stand as a councillor. They put her name on the list and sent it through to my office and the head office and it was captured at the IEC. Unfortunately, the stop order she signed hadn’t gotten to me and I only found out via Twitter that she’s now a member of the party and is running for ward councillor,” he said.
Mabaso said they then had to take action and announce that she couldn’t run.
“In terms of the constitution and processes of the ATM, she was not yet a member. Yes, she signed the stop order, but she didn’t sign as a member. She is not a member yet, we have not yet approved her membership and therefore she cannot run under us. We had to release a statement because the matter was already in the public domain.”
He said there was a conflict of interest because Kuli was also a journalist and an activist.
