The 2011 election is the next step in the DA's plan to govern SA

For the next 10 days, the DA will throw everything into maximizing our support on May 18. I have never seen a party more enthused or more focused. The will to win runs deep in the DA.

This election has proved that the Democratic Alliance has become a party of government that is home to a diverse cross-section of South Africans who share our vision of an Open, Opportunity Society for All.

Because there has been a significant increase in support for the DA among black voters in this election, the DA is in a position to win more councils than ever on May 18.

The fact that the DA is seriously challenging the ANC in places like Johannesburg, Tshwane and Nelson Mandela Bay would have been unthinkable just five years ago. Today it is a reality.

Whether or not the DA wins in these cities, the ANC will have been served notice: in future, service delivery failure will be punished by the voters. There will no longer be a free ride for any party in South Africa. The race card is discredited as an excuse for service delivery failure.

But these local government elections are just part of the DA's longer term plan to bring opportunity and delivery to South Africa, and we want voters to know that. We will take the gains made in these elections into the 2014 election and beyond, offering delivery for all at every level of government.

The DA is serious about building a party that is capable of winning enough support to govern South Africa in the foreseeable future, if not alone then in coalition with other forward-looking parties. We have a vision and we have a plan.

Just a few aspects of our plan, among many others, are set out below:

The DA will continue to diversify the leadership of the party and ensure that our emerging young leaders get the platforms they deserve. In 2014 we will offer South Africa a diverse leadership slate as well as Premier and Parliamentary candidates.

In order to ensure that our governments perform, the DA has established a Government Support Unit located in the DA's National Head Office, reporting directly to the Chairperson of the Federal Council. It will monitor delivery in all DA local governments.

Every DA Mayor will sign a service delivery contract with the Federal Executive of the DA. Any Mayor that consistently fails to live up to his or her contractual obligations will be relieved of duty.

The DA's Young Leaders Programme will be expanded and will, by 2014, have produced well over a hundred graduates. Some are already public representatives, some work for the party and many are about to become councilors. Many will emerge on our lists in 2014.

The DA will intensify our campaign to build party structures at grass roots level in townships and rural areas across South Africa. These structures are the bed-rock of our success, because they give the DA lasting credibility among voters who have historically not enjoyed enough direct contact with the party.

Statement issued by Helen Zille, Leader of the Democratic Alliance, May 8 2011

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