Gauteng Premier Lesufi Survives DA No-Confidence Vote Over Amapanyaza Wardens
JOHANNESBURG, 14 November 2025. Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi survived a motion of no confidence tabled by the Democratic Alliance in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature on Friday, with 54 of 80 members present voting against the motion and 24 voting in favour. One member abstained.
Gauteng Premier Lesufi Survives DA No-Confidence Vote Over Amapanyaza Wardens
JOHANNESBURG, 14 November 2025. Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi survived a motion of no confidence tabled by the Democratic Alliance in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature on Friday, with 54 of 80 members present voting against the motion and 24 voting in favour. One member abstained.
The DA brought the motion following a Public Protector finding that Lesufi had unlawfully established the Gauteng Crime Prevention Wardens, a unit known colloquially as Amapanyaza. The Public Protector ruled that the wardens had been created outside the proper legal framework for provincial law-enforcement bodies, without the required approval of the provincial legislature.
The Economic Freedom Fighters and the uMkhonto weSizwe Party both declined to support the DA's motion. EFF Gauteng leader Moses Koma called the motion baseless, saying there was "no motion sponsored by Stellenbosch and concocted by Donald Trump that will find expression." MK Party representative Thabang Nkani described the motion as "frivolous," adding that his party stood "firm and unequivocal" in opposing it. The EFF had previously indicated it would require a public apology from the DA, which had described EFF leaders as "dangerous demagogues" and the party as "enemy number one", before considering any collaboration on the motion.
Following the announcement of the result, ANC members in the legislature chamber began celebratory songs. The DA said it was disappointed by the outcome and accused the EFF and MK Party of prioritising political considerations over provincial governance accountability.
The Amapanyaza wardens had been deployed in townships across Gauteng as a visible crime prevention initiative. Critics, including the DA, argued that the unit had operated without adequate oversight and that its establishment bypassed legislative accountability mechanisms.
The Gauteng Provincial Legislature has 80 seats. Following the May 2024 general elections, no party holds an outright majority in the province: the ANC holds the largest number of seats and governs without a formal coalition agreement at the provincial level.