Parties welcome election date announcement

Various political parties have welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa’s announcement yesterday of 29 May as the date for the national and provincial elections.

The Economic Freedom Fighter (EFF) said the polls marked an opportunity for all South Africans to put an end to their misery.

The party said it welcomed the “long overdue announcement of the date for the provincial and national elections”.

“We have suffered as a nation under the incompetent, corrupt and misguided governance of the ANC for 30 years,” the EFF said.

Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) said it viewed 29 May as a “day of freedom” for the country “to finally free itself from the clutches of an ANC government that has only delivered poverty, unemployment, underdevelopment, and widespread corruption”.

It added: “The IFP stands ready for this election. Let us together embrace this date as a pivotal moment in symbolising an opportunity for the nation to liberate itself from the grips of a failed government once and for all.”

ActionSA national chair Michael Beaumont invited Ramaphosa and the premiers to begin clearing their offices and updating their CVs.

He said the party had built structures in all nine provinces, with branches over 45% of all the wards in SA.

“By-elections have been contested in various provinces which have revealed ActionSA’s continued growth in Gauteng,” he said.

“Our vote winning potential into double digits in provinces outside of urban centres and the fact that ActionSA is uniting South Africans from all communities and background,” he said.

The Democratic Alliance (DA) emphasised that the election was a turning point for the country, and it came at a time when the nation needed it the most in three decades.

DA leader John Steenhuisen said the election was an opportunity for voters to choose a path of progress, transparency and accountability.

He noted that the DA was “meticulously prepared for this historic election, with support levels currently at their highest”.

The SABC reported that the ANC said it was ready for the battle at the polls, which will start in earnest with the launch of the party’s elections manifesto at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Saturday.