Boardroom Talk: Cederberg by-election result delivers positive message for concept of coalitions

Right now, there's plenty of noise around the way SA's new political coalitions AREN'T working. Particularly in Gauteng where Gayton McKenzie's Patriotic Alliance is shamelessly wielding its swing vote. This raises concerns about growing political instability after the 2024 National Election which is only 18 months away. But it's not all bad news..In Wednesday's fiercely fought by-election in the small West Coast fishing town of Lambert's Bay, a coalition between the DA, FF+ and local Cederberg Eerste parties saw off the challenge from McKenzie's lot. The election was triggered after DA-elected councillor William Farmer switched to vote with the PA. He was the party's candidate this week..The three coalition parties agreed to avoid splitting their vote by getting behind the DA's candidate John Hayes, a medical doctor who has practiced in the town for 35 years. This helped Hayes to comfortably defeat Farmer – enabling the coalition to re-take a grip on control of the Cederberg Municipality from the ANC/PA compact..___STEADY_PAYWALL___.Although Cederberg is a relatively small municipality, this by-election provided useful insights. For instance, it is now clear McKenzie's party, while nominally against the ANC, will join with it should power be promised. As relevant, where coalitions are strong – as with the DA, FF+, CE alliance here – a united front can deliver winning results..More for you to read today: .Pan African Resources: Buy, hold or sell? Pan African Resources' economics aren't rocket science; good things will happen if gold rises, the ZAR/$ weakens, and it produces more gold.UK pension fund selling stokes fear across bond markets. UK pension funds are dumping assets to meet margin calls as the Bank of England confirmed it will end its emergency bond buying program, with the reverberations being felt everywhere from Sydney to Frankfurt and New York.US Inflation sits at 8,2% as core prices hit four-decade high. Consumer-price index's rise eased slightly in September but core index marked biggest increase since 1982.Who blew up Britain's pension funds? A crisis probably was inevitable after a decade of too-low interest rates.Even a small nuclear test by North Korea would be a big US worry. As North Korea moves closer to its first nuclear test in five years, one of the biggest worries for the US and its allies might be a relatively small blast.Russia's Elites Are Starting to Admit the Possibility of Defeat. The longer the conflict rages and the more resources the Russian regime throws into the furnace of war, the more isolated Putin may become in his bid for nuclear escalation..Meet Soweto's budding property mogul whose portfolio has contracts, cash flow – but no bank financeA common trait among successful entrepreneurs is their good fortune in having started early. Few, however, kicked off as five year olds – the age at which Nthabiseng Sejake began helping in her mother's spaza shop and tavern. Sejake honed used skills acquired as a pre-teen to develop B Evolusion, a fast-growing 'backroom' renting business in Soweto. She was identified by informal economy guru GG Alcock as epitomising this much misunderstood R20bn area which succeeds despite being starved of capital by SA's formal banking sector. In this interview with Alec Hogg of BizNews, the budding property mogul shares her story – and dreams – and how, in four years, she has built a portfolio with dozens of quality apartments on three sites in Soweto. An inspirational story of a woman for whom the sky is surely the limit once scales lift from the collective eyes of SA's financial institutions. .NB FOR YOUR WALL STREET JOURNAL ACCESS….As a Premium subscriber you are entitled to full membership of wsj.com (normal price $29 a month). Be sure to action your access through the Premium link on the BizNews website. Because of The Wall Street Journal's credential requirements, be sure to create a password which has at least 8 characters and includes at least one letter and one number – NB it MAY NOT contain any special characters (ie #, !, @ etc). To maintain access to WSJ.com, you MUST enter our partner's website via BizNews Premium at least once a month. A final PS, if you had previously signed up for WSJ you'll need to clear the cookies from your device. Our helpdesk can assist –support@biznews.com.

Boardroom Talk: Cederberg by-election result delivers positive message for concept of coalitions

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