The following statement was delivered at a press conference on the progress of the Democratic Alliance’s (DA) 2019 election campaign by the DA National Spokesperson, Solly Malatsi, at Nkululeko House today. Malatsi was joined by the DA Campaign Manager Jonathan Moakes and DA Executive Director of Communications, Siviwe Gwarube.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) is firmly on track to achieve its objectives of retaining the Western Cape, bringing the ANC below 50% in both Gauteng and the Northern Cape and growing across the length and breadth of the country. From Makhanda in the Eastern Cape to Musina in Limpopo, South Africans do not want to waste any more time nor opportunity. The time for change is now. And in four weeks time, millions of South Africans will use their power to put an end to 25 years of wasted opportunities.
The failing ANC is well aware of the precarious electoral situation they face. And they do not know what to do other than to resort to violence, chaos and exploiting legitimate grievances of citizens they have let down. From Alex to Tshwane, from Caledon to Khayelitsha, the ANC campaign plan is clear. Violence, disruption and disorder. They are prepared to burn our country to the ground just to stay in power so that they can continue to eat the money and get rich at the expense of South Africans. They have no offer, no policy and they do not know how to get the country working and keep the lights on.
We have clear evidence of how the ANC incited violence in Alex using its branch chairs and members of the ANC Youth League (ANCYL). At the forefront of this has been, ANC Campaign Head, Fikile Mbalula, and his Bell Pottinger Bot Army. Just this week, ANC and ANCYL members stormed the Gangster State book launch and destroyed copies of the book which details Ace Magashule’s reign of corruption in the Free State. And last week, the country saw two videos of ANC Deputy Secretary-General, Jessie Duarte, verbally abuse journalists on two separate occasions. Cyril Ramaphosa is clearly not in control of his party which is beyond repair. He operates in a bubble of delusion, clearly fearful of trying to take any action against his boss – Ace Magashule.
To decisively deal with the growing unrest across the country, the DA has decided it is time to act. Unlike the ANC, we will not play with the lives of people who have been let down by this government for 25 years. This is why today, Alan Winde, the Western Cape Premier Candidate and John Moodey, the Provincial Leader for Gauteng will be seeking an urgent meeting with the Provincial Police Commissioners. In addition, DA Leader, Mmusi Maimane, will be writing to National Police Commissioner requesting an urgent intervention and strategy to deal with the increasing national unrest. It is important that we get to the bottom of these protests because it is the most vulnerable residents who are affected. This kind of violence also masks the legitimate concerns people have about the rate of service delivery across the country.
The ANC has incited these protests and has now lost complete control of them. President Ramaphosa is incapable of controlling his party which has now endangered the lives of many and potentially claimed 4 lives in the past 10 days.
DA Campaign:
In stark contrast, the DA’s offer for the people of South Africa is compelling, full of vision and demonstrates a party with plan to manage the real problems that South Africans face. Launched on 22 September last year, our vision to build One South Africa for All by pursuing our five core pledges:
- The DA will fight corruption
- The DA will ensure fair access to jobs
- The DA will create an honest and professional police force
- The DA will secure our borders
- The DA will speed up the delivery of basic services
We have taken this message of hope and change to every corner of our country. Our ground war figures are better than ever – with tens of thousands of volunteers out in the field everyday. The DA is delivering its message to every household in South Africa.
For the first time in the DA’s history, we have the capacity to be active and present through extended periods of time, across a range of different communities throughout our country.
The DA-led wave of change has garnered a forceful momentum, which spans from Pondoland in the heart of rural Eastern Cape to the streets of Limpopo, where we have never had a footprint before. We have also interacted with and registered more young people than any other political party and continue to engage with our youth by innovative means, digitally and across an array of online platforms. This is also the first time we have taken mass rallies to all 9 provinces following our national manifesto launch.
The DA is growing and the DA is strong. We have six television ads, four of which have already been flighted. We have over 200 radio ads in all eleven official languages, all of which are currently airing. Our poster operation is the largest one in the history of our party, with over 1.5 million being flighted for the elections, and we have hundreds of other placements in the form of billboards and pamphlets, taxi wraps and leaflets. The DA is here to win.
We are certain that we are well on our way to reaching our electoral targets. Yesterday’s win of an ANC ward in Hessequa demonstrates that the people of the Western Cape are united behind the mission of keeping the province DA. Across the Western Cape, our support is strong and is at the same level where it was 4 weeks before the 2014 elections. This does not mean we will take any vote for granted. Unlike the ANC, the DA does not suffer from the illness of incumbency. Alan Winde has taken his message of fighting crime, creating jobs, bringing about a provincial rail and speeding up the provision of basic services to every corner of the province. We will continue to meet with every voter and assure them of our commitment to continue serving them for the next 5 years.
In Gauteng, all trends show that the ANC has never been weaker. As of last night, our research shows significant weakness of the ANC which could mean a real victory for the DA in the province in the next four weeks.
In the Northern Cape, our campaign has never been stronger as more and more citizens mobilise behind our offer of honest government that will end corruption in the province. Once again the ANC is showing incredible weakness in the province. We will continue to knock on every door and engage with every voter until at the last possible moment.
We have 26 days to go till the elections and the ANC’s fear of our momentum has revealed itself and unashamedly so. Their criminality has once again reared its ugly face, through the emergence of ANC-sponsored destabilisation and anarchy campaigns in DA-run metros. It is now clearer than ever that the ANC would rather create chaos, instability and disrupt peoples’ daily lives than accept that they are losing support.
Over the next 26 days, the DA will intensify its campaign to bring change to South Africa. Led by Mmusi Maimane, DA candidates will criss-cross the country. On Monday, we will launch our next TV Advert that will starkly demonstrate the choice in this election – the violence, disorder, corruption and unemployment of the failing ANC or change that ends corruption, brings order and puts a job in every home.
We will roll out an extensive visibility campaign across the country on Easter Weekend, engaging South Africans. This will be followed by the national Freedom Day event in Johannesburg which will showcase how the ANC has wasted the last 25 years instead of materially changing the lives of our people. We will then host a Worker’s Day rally in the Western Cape which will serve as the province’s final rally.
On Saturday 04 May, the DA’s campaign will culminate in our Phetogo – We Can Win Rally at Dobsonville Stadium. And then the week will commence that will set South Africa on the path to a better future. A future that will start with five years of cutting corruption, speeding up the delivery of basic services and ensuring that there is a job in every home.
