Bazil Petrus
South African politician
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Bazil Petrus (born 15 June 1967) is a South African politician who has been a Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament for the Patriotic Alliance since 2024. Petrus is a veteran politician in the George Local Municipality, having served as executive mayor for two nonconsecutive terms, from 2004 until 2008 and again from 2010 to 2011.
Bazil Petrus | |
|---|---|
| Member of the Western Cape Provincial Parliament | |
| Assumed office 13 June 2024 | |
| Executive Mayor of the George Local Municipality | |
| In office 19 August 2010 – 31 March 2011 | |
| Preceded by | Mercia Draghoender |
| Succeeded by | Lionel Esau (acting) |
| In office 2004 – 7 March 2008 | |
| Preceded by | Marius Swart |
| Succeeded by | Flip de Swart |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 15 June 1967[1] |
| Party | Patriotic Alliance (2023–present) |
| Other political affiliations | Democratic Alliance (2000–2008, 2010–2011, 2020–2023) Good (2019–2020) South African Civics (2016–2019) African National Congress (2011–2016) Independent Democrats (2008–2011) George Gemeenskap Vereeniging (1995–2000) |
| Profession | Politician |
Political career
In 1995, Petrus was elected to the George council as a member of the George Gemeenskap Vereeniging (English: George Community Association).[2] He was elected to the municipal council of the newly established George Local Municipality in 2000 as a member of the Democratic Alliance. He served as mayor of the municipality from 2004 until 7 March 2008, when he was expelled from the party for undermining the party during the 2007 floor-crossing period. He then joined the Independent Democrats, stood as the party's candidate in the subsequent by-election in his old ward and won the seat from the DA.[3]
Petrus was later elected speaker of the municipal council. During a council meeting on 19 August 2010, he resigned as council speaker, while Mercia Draghoender, also from the ID, resigned as mayor; he was subsequently voted in as mayor of the municipality.[4] This development came a few days after the DA and ID announced that they would entering into a pact which would result in merger by 2014.[5] On 28 March 2011, it was revealed that Petrus was on both the DA's and the ANC's candidate lists for the municipal election on 18 May 2011.[6] He ceased to be a councillor for the ID and therefore mayor on 31 March 2011, after having been expelled from the ID.[7] He was elected back to council as an ANC councillor at the election.[8] Petrus later resigned from the ANC and formed his own party, South African Civics, before the 2016 municipal elections.[2] The party won one seat on the municipal council in the election, which Petrus subsequently filled.[9]
Petrus resigned as the sole SAC councillor and defected to the Good party, of which he was appointed regional coordinator, in April 2019.[10] He later left Good and returned to the DA in September 2020.[11] He was then announced as the party's candidate for the by-election in ward 8 on 11 November 2020, which he won.[12]
Petrus was elected to a full term as a ward councillor in the 2021 municipal elections. He was then appointed to mayor Leon van Wyk's mayoral committee as the member responsible for human settlements.[13] Van Wyk conducted a reshuffle of his mayoral committee in October 2023 which saw Petrus removed as a mayoral committee member.[14] Petrus then resigned as a ward councillor in November and later joined the Patriotic Alliance.[15][16]
Petrus stood as a candidate for the PA on the party's provincial list in the 2024 Western Cape provincial election and was elected to the Western Cape Provincial Parliament.[17] He serves as the leader of the PA's caucus.[18]