Promises from ANC, DA and EFF
As the three big parties go all out to woo undecided voters, we look back at their campaign pitches
It’s crunch time and the three largest political parties have upped the ante in a bid to convince the electorate they are best placed to govern and deliver services at municipal level. The ANC, Democratic Alliance and Economic Freedom Fighters have each leveraged the popularity of their top brass to canvass for votes.
EFF leader Julius Malema has remained relatively blemish free during the election campaign and the party has hit few speed bumps, apart from its demands that the SABC dedicate a team to cover its campaign and breaking Covid-19 regulations during its manifesto launch.
Meanwhile, the DA and the ANC have each been rocked by scandal.
DA Kwazulu-natal provincial chairperson Dean Macpherson was disciplined over the controversial election posters he displayed in Phoenix earlier this month, where more than 30 people were killed during the July unrest. Macpherson was ordered to take the posters down by the party’s federal executive. The posters, stating “The ANC called you racists” and “The DA calls you heroes”, appeared together in Phoenix.
The DA was subsequently reported to the South African Human Rights Commission by an activist who wants action to be taken for the posters’ “racially inciting” content.
Meanwhile, the ANC’S top brass have been bitterly received in communities while campaigning. Soweto residents hurled insults at President Cyril Ramaphosa and, in Tshwane, Deputy President David Mabuza received a lacklustre reception as residents blamed the ANC for unemployment and service delivery woes.
ANC members have also disputed the selection of some of the party’s candidates. In some areas, infighting has degenerated into chaos, with at least 10 people killed during the candidate selection process.
Overall, each party has made specific promises to the electorate in an attempt to woo voters.
The DA manifesto
The DA was the first to launch its manifesto, on 25 September, promising to modernise policing at the municipal level by investing in localised law enforcement.
In his speech, DA leader John Steenhuisen said that the party’s goal was to devolve much of the policing functions from the national government to competent metros and municipalities.
“DA governments will invest in crime information services and smart policing that is informationdriven, intelligence-driven and datadriven,” he said.
The party has also promised to make its municipalities more attractive to investment, in an effort to create jobs. Steenhuisen said municipalities should research competitive advantages of the local economy and lean towards sectors that exhibited the most potential for growth.
He said DA governments will clearly communicate service-level agreements and turnaround times for refuse collection, burst pipes, electrical faults, potholes, and other queries lodged.
The EFF manifesto
The EFF were next in line, with a pro-poor manifesto that relied heavily on land redistribution.
In it, the party pledges to carry out land audits to determine true land ownership, and to have abandoned and unused land expropriated for redistribution to landless people.
Malema said the party will develop a land-reform plan, outlining municipal-based land reform targets, in every municipality it governs.
“These targets will be aimed at resolving urban land hunger … and ensuring access to land for housing, urban agriculture and black-led industrial activities. In rural municipalities, these targets will be focused on increasing agricultural production and providing land for housing.”
Some of the party’s more lofty plans include social grants at municipal level for indigent people, as well as free basic services, such as water and electricity, for the poor.
To curb costs, Malema said EFF municipalities would abolish the tender system and in-source workers.
Malema said the party would discontinue the private ownership of bulk water infrastructure, and provide access to clean water to all. He also promised to build new water treatment plants, and employ artisans to repair leaks in infrastructure, with the aim of reducing the amount of water lost to leaks by 90%.
The ANC manifesto
Meanwhile, the ANC had a lot to answer to. Its manifesto, delivered by Ramaphosa, was a mixture of repentance and commitments.
The ANC president promised that his government would significantly increase the role of renewable energy through a just transition that creates new economic opportunities.
He pledged that the government would reduce the time that households wait for new electricity connections and invest in the infrastructure that municipalities need to supply homes and businesses with power.
The ANC also pledged to release more land to citizens, saying it will continue to upgrade informal settlements and change municipal zoning practices to better integrate housing, recreation facilities and economic opportunities.
Ramaphosa also promised that the ANC would continue to provide Covid-19 grants and support measures for workers and businesses.
Ramaphosa pledged that the party would subject all representatives and officials who fail to behave appropriately in fulfilling their roles, to disciplinary action. He added that, when necessary, people will be removed from their positions.
“Where there is evidence that a crime has been committed, the matter will be referred to law enforcement. We pledge to act speedily against officials conducting business with municipalities and against those implicated in maladministration,” Ramaphosa said.