The Democratic Alliance’s controversial attempt to turn the Jive Cape Town Funny Festival into a party-political fundraiser has been cancelled and while this is a victory for transparency and accountability, it comes at a cost to local artists.
The GOOD Party first raised alarm bells on 9 May, highlighting the clear violation of the City of Cape Town’s Events Policy, which strictly prohibits public funds being used to support political parties. Despite this, the DA only pulled the plug at the eleventh hour, leaving performers in the lurch.
The Jive Cape Town Funny Festival received R600,000 in public sponsorship from the City. It is unconscionable that the DA sought to hijack the event to raise funds for their 2026 local election campaign. This was never just poor judgment, it was a blatant abuse of power.
While GOOD welcomes the decision to cancel the event, we remain deeply concerned about the financial impact on the performers. The artists scheduled to appear on the night had no part in the DA’s scheme, and they should not bear the consequences of the DA’s flagrant disregard for policy.
We call on the DA to do the ethical and responsible thing: ensure that every artist who was booked and expected to perform on that night is paid in full. Cancelling the event was the right move but why did it take almost a month of public pressure to do the right thing?
Media Enquiries media@forgood.org.za