The following remarks were delivered today by the DA Leader during a public meeting in Kathu, Northern Cape. This forms part of the National #Change19 Tour. The Leader was joined by the Northern Cape Provincial Leader, Andrew Louw
My fellow South Africans,
Thank you for coming out to meet me today. And thank you for welcoming me into your homes and your warm and friendly community.
I love this part of the world, but I also know a community like yours could be so much more if some important changes took place here. And so I’d like to speak to today you about some of the things you should be getting from your government, but aren’t.
You can tell a lot about a government by what they do when it’s not election time. By what happens in between elections, when they are no longer that desperate for your vote.
And what I’m seeing in Kathu, and particularly here in Mapoteng, points to a government that does not care about you at all once they have your vote in their back pocket. Because a caring government would not let their people live in filth.
A caring government would not let raw sewage run down your streets and in between your homes where your children play. A government that truly cared for you would not allow this to go on for days without doing anything about it, let alone the months, even years, that you’ve had to put up with it.
A caring government would not bury its head in the sand and hope the problem gets solved by someone else.
No, my fellow South Africans, a government that cared about you would make it their business to look after you. They would make it their business to ensure that you don’t have to live in conditions that they wouldn’t be prepared to live in.
The problem is, the ANC government cares about a lot of things, just not about you. They care about making money, about protecting the corrupt, about staying in power. But they don’t care about the basics of good governance.
The problems with the continuous sewage spills here in Mapoteng aren’t because of complex, unfixable issues. These problems aren’t because of sabotage or even lack of budget. They are simply problems of poor governance.
Every piece of equipment used to deliver services needs to be maintained. All equipment needs to be checked for wear and tear, and any old or broken parts need to be replaced. And that goes for these sewage reservoirs too.
The sensors in these reservoirs that are meant to prevent overflows should have been replaced as soon as they failed. But, like almost everything in this town, it was simply ignored by this ANC government.
I am told, following relentless pressure from the DA, they have gone out and bought seven new sensors for these reservoirs. But even these seven new sensors won’t solve the problem, as there are up to twenty that need replacing. And of course, in true ANC style, they have completely overpaid their connected “preferred suppliers”, which means they don’t have the budget for the rest.
Unfortunately this is how this ANC government responds to a crisis. They ignore it for years, and when they cannot possibly ignore it any longer, they make a weak attempt at fixing the bare minimum while making a few cadres rich along the way. Then you don’t see them again while your streets run thick with sewage.
The same goes for the water supply issues across large parts of Kathu. The many, many burst pipes aren’t going to fix themselves. But the ANC government seem to think they will, because they certainly aren’t doing anything about it.
My fellow South Africans, no one should live like this. Things must change for you here in Mapoteng. But I can assure you nothing will change unless you make it happen.
The first step is to ensure that Ward 7 here in Mapoteng remains a DA ward in the upcoming by-election on 20 September. The DA won it in last year’s municipal election by a very small margin, and it would be a huge setback for your community if it were to return to the ANC.
But the big change you need to make is in two years’ time in the 2019 national and provincial elections. Because then many of you are going to have to do something you have never done before: You are going to have to turn your back on the ANC and vote for a new government.
The change you need will not happen within the ANC. The rot of corruption and enrichment has spread too far and wide already. Change will have to come from outside the ANC, and you are the only people who can make this happen.
Each of you has, in your vote, the power to decide what path our country takes, and what future a place like Mapoteng has. And in 2019 you are going to have to lend your vote to the DA, or face another five years of this – of sewage running through your homes, of taps running dry and of your government dodging all their responsibilities to you.
And take note: I said “lend” your vote, not give your vote. Because no one should pledge their support forever. If the DA should disappoint you, then you must take your vote back again, because that is how this democracy is meant to work.
But first give us that one chance. I assure you we will work very hard to repay your trust.
Thank you.