Opposition parties in the Drakenstein municipality, in the Western Cape, on Wednesday removed Conrad Poole as mayor through a motion of no confidence, amid serious allegations of corruption.

The GOOD party joined forces with other opposition parties after losing trust in the Democratic Alliance (DA) mayor and in his ability to lead the municipality, said GOOD Drakenstein Councillor and Caucus Whip Keagen Gerste.

The vote, through a secret ballot, was passed in Council on Wednesday. The motion was carried with 34 votes in favour of removal and 26 against his removal, with 2 abstaining from the process.

“Moreover, the motion to remove Poole was necessary because the DA's leadership failed to act. Their claims to always act in the interests of good governance were exposed for the hypocrisy it is,” said Gerste.

He said while faced with serious allegations of corrupt and unethical conduct the DA chose to keep Poole on as mayor.

In August last year, GOOD wrote to the Speaker of Council about allegations that Poole was running a pay-for-jobs scheme with councillors paying a kickback for lucrative Mayoral Committee positions.

The complaint activated two consecutive investigations, in terms of the Councillors Code of Conduct, and prima facie evidence was found of a potential breach of the Code and of Poole violating certain rules.

“In addition to facing a disciplinary hearing, parties held that stronger measurements of accountability should be implemented against Poole. It was then agreed that his removal would best serve the people of Drakenstein,” Gerste recalled.

Meanwhile, DA provincial leader in the Western Cape Tertuis Simmers assured residents that service delivery would continue unaffected, and since the party had a majority in council, a new DA mayor will be elected in due course.

Simmers said Drakenstein was one of the "best-run municipalities" in the country as confirmed by their back-to-back clean audit reports and many service delivery accolades.

He added that in the interim, Deputy Mayor Gert Combrink would take over the responsibilities of the Mayor.