Fighting Corruption: Failing ANC is selling our people dreams and delivering nightmares

5 November 2018

Addressing the Heidedal residents this afternoon the ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa announced that they will remove all the corrupt people that misuse public monies because the failing ANC is against corruption. 

This he said in a province that has been brought to its knees by corruption; spearheaded by the former Premier and current ANC Secretary General, Ace Magashule. If the failing ANC is serious about rooting out corruption it will start by getting rid of Ace Magashule.

Magashule has been implicated in numerous dodgy deals and nepotism, the most notorious being the Vrede Dairy Project and the expensive Free State Government website.

The DA has submitted a dossier of various allegations of corrupt activities that implicate him directly to the Zondo Commission, requesting him to appear and account for his involvement in the Provincial Capture. If the failing ANC was serious about fighting corruption they should have been the first to push Magashule to appear before the Commission and ensure that he accounts to the Public Protector about his involvement in the controversial Vrede Dairy Farm.

Ramaphosa is selling dreams to our people, while their daily survival are nightmares of failed municipal services, poor healthcare and unemployment. He knows very well that his government is unable to root out corruption because it is deeply embedded in the DNA of the failing ANC.

Recently Cogta Minister, Zweli Mkhize, was in the province to deal with the issue of underperforming municipalities. He came up with a financial recovery plan that should be implemented as a turn-around strategy. To date that turn-around strategy has not been tabled in any Councils. Any strategy that has financial implications should be tabled in the Councils, failing which the strategy will not be implemented. All of this shows that the failing ANC has no political will to fight corruption.

Unemployment in the Free State has continuously increased up to a point where four out of ten Free Staters are now unable to find permanent employment, while two out of three job seekers between the ages of 18-25 have no realistic chance of accessing employment.

The National Treasury is considering placing the province under the administration, this happens because of cadre deployment corruption and poor governance. The province is on fire due to service delivery protests. The ANC are aware of all this, but they have done nothing. Suddenly they want us to believe that they are against corruption.

Only the DA can bring real change to the Free State that will stop corruption and accelerate the delivery of services. Only the DA can build One South Africa for All, where the people come first.

Issued by Patricia Kopane, DA Free State Premier Candidate, 5 November 2018