#KZNisBurning: Premier admits ANC factionalism role in stoking the fires of anarchy
14 July 2021
The Democratic Alliance is extremely disturbed by a media report in which Premier Sihle Zikalala has – for the second time – publicly stated that it would be good to have former President Jacob Zuma released.
The comment was made yesterday in response to media questions about whether releasing Zuma from prison would help stem the crippling violence in our province and in Gauteng.
In supporting the former President’s release, Premier Zikalala has effectively admitted that ANC internal factional battles are behind what our people have suffered these past few days.
The Premier’s comments are also nothing short of reckless and inflammatory. In fact, they are stoking the fires of anarchy and destruction in KZN.
The Premier’s stance is also confirmation of what the DA has long suspected – that he is clearly aligned to the former President’s camp. His lack of concrete action during the past few days is ample evidence of this.
KZN has been brought to its knees and the blame must be squarely placed at the door of the ANC’s Radical Economic Transformation faction – of which the Premier is a vocal supporter.
As much as the people of KZN are desperately wanting to return to some kind of normality, sadly this will not be possible for as long as we have a Premier who is more concerned with his own political agenda than the needs of ordinary citizens.
Had he exercised precise, unpoliticized leadership. The complete chaos witnessed during the past few days would have been stopped before it escalated. And had he put KZN’s people first, we would not be living in a province where the economy has been destroyed and where unemployment is only going to become much worse.
Tomorrow, the DA in the KZN Legislature will take part in an urgent Debate on the state of our province. We expect the Premier to set aside his own political agenda and to outline his rescue plan to rebuild KZN. Nothing less will do.
Issued by Francois Rodgers, Leader of the DA in the KZN Legislature, 14 July 2021
