We welcome the final decision of the matter of who will govern Cape Town. Those who now run the Cape Town government will now turn immediately to the business of serving the electorate and addressing the various service delivery challenges facing the city; housing, electricity and corruption, to name but a few.

Since the announcement of the election results the DA and ANC have formed local governments in Beaufort West and George, but in the case of Cape Town it seems that they could not agree. This created a situation where all parties have had to be mature and acknowledge that despite ideological differences the wishes of the majority of voters had to be heeded and that service delivery and governance should proceed. It also meant that Cape Town's governance could not be delayed by political greed, self-importance or opportunism.

The UDM is glad that it is part of the solution. We are proud of, and salute, the conduct of the forum of smaller parties, who during these negotiations were more concerned with the interests of the voters and good governance than some others who were bickering about positions.