The dream of 27 April 1994 is alive where the DA governs

26 April 2014

Note to Editors: This is an extract of a speech delivered by DA Leader Helen Zille at the Bellville Velodrome in Cape Town today. 

Democrats, voters, al die blou Wes Kaapenaars, 

The election in the Western Cape is close. The newspapers are saying that we are going to win. Even some people in the ANC are saying that we are going to win. But people forget that we won this province with just over 50% of the vote in 2009. 

We can get over 50% on May 7, and we can grow our majority, but to do so we need every single DA voter to go and vote on Election Day. We can only do it if you go and vote. We have to stand together to win the Western Cape again. 

We need to win this province again so that we can continue to grow the Western Cape economy and create more jobs - so that we can carry on building a better life for all residents of this province.  

Our campaign has been run on the issues, and on the facts about what the DA has delivered in the Western Cape in the last five years. We are proud of our record, and everywhere we go in this province people tell us that they are happy with the way things are going. Step by step, things are getting better in the Western Cape. 

More people are working. We have the lowest unemployment rate, and the highest economic growth rate, in South Africa. 

More people have access to basic services. The Western Cape has the highest access to free basic services in the country. 

We are delivering a better life for all citizens in the Western Cape. 

Over the last few weeks I've been all over the Western Cape. I've seen evidence of real progress everywhere. 

I've met entrepreneurs who have opened up successful new businesses with the help of our support programmes. We've met graduates of the Work and Skills programme that provides school leavers with on-the-job training. These entrepreneurs and young people are now helping to create more jobs for others. 

Just last week I had another chance to visit the brand new hospitals the DA government has built in Mitchells Plain and Khayelitsha. I visited all the new moms and their beautiful new babies. Those two hospitals are delivering world class medical care, savings lives in the Western Cape every day. 

This is the Western Cape Story: the story of the best run province in South Africa. 

Tomorrow, we celebrate Freedom Day. It is perhaps the first time since his passing last December that the entire nation's thoughts will turn to the extraordinary life of our first President, Nelson Mandela. We try our best to emulate his example every day in the DA. We work to bring people together around a vision of a shared, prosperous South Africa. We prefer action over words. We are passionate about the future of our country, and about building that future together. 

When you elected a DA government, you elected a government that committed to building an Open, Opportunity Society for All. And in the last five years, we have begun to do that - together. That is why we are calling on all South Africans to stand together with the DA in this election. Together for Change, Together for Jobs. 

Together, we have created more jobs than any other province in South Africa. Together we have cut corruption and delivered more services to everyone. 

In 2009, the DA set out a bold vision to be the best run regional government in the world. After five years of hard work and determination, the Western Cape economy is growing faster than other provinces. We introduced legislation to stop government employees from doing business with the government. We helped deserving entrepreneurs to apply for tenders.  

In the last quarter of 2013, the DA government created more jobs than the rest of the other provinces combined. Just last week the South Africa LED Network found that the Cape Town economy is the most inclusive economy in South Africa. 

We've laid a good foundation. We've made great progress. 

The question is - Can we continue this progress after 7 May, or will we give this province back to Jacob Zuma's ANC. 

Only the DA has a track record in government that shows we can speed up growth, create hundreds of thousands of new jobs and build many new ladders of opportunity. 

The ANC had a chance to run this province before, and they fluffed it. We know how the ANC operates. It stays quiet for five year then claims it is going to change everybody's lives during election time. Why didn't the ANC create jobs in the Western Cape when it governed here? 

As Mmusi says - "where are the jobs Mr President?"  

We know the answer - the jobs are here, where the DA governs.  

What will the Western Cape look like in five years' time if the DA is re-elected? 

We must ensure that the Western Cape is the number one destination for investment in South Africa. If we continue to show the rest of South Africa that this is a place where the economy grows, where the government does not steal money or expect a bribe, and where things work, then we will attract more investment and create many new jobs. 

Major infrastructure investment and an efficient, corruption free government are the ingredients of a strong, growing, job creating economy.

We will invest tens of billions into expanding opportunities for everyone. That means more new schools, more support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. More skills development, apprenticeships and job placements for young people. It means more investment in a world class public transport network. It means better roads, safer streets, better and more accessible health care facilities. 

It's plain and simple. By investing in infrastructure and policies which expand opportunities, we are growing the economy, creating real jobs, and we are building a better future for our children. 

But none of this progress can be taken for granted. It is only safe if the DA is given a mandate to build on the foundations laid over the last five years.

With 11 days to go before Election Day, the DA is ready to grow our support in communities across the Western Cape and the country significantly.  

More and more South Africans are recognising the DA as the only party that has a credible plan to create real jobs, as the only party that is serious about stopping corruption, and as the only party that is truly for all the people. 

We have the most diverse slate of candidates we've ever had, and we have a track record of delivering for all, stopping corruption, and creating jobs where we govern. 

Five years after Jacob Zuma became president, many people feel like things are starting to head in the wrong direction. 

But where the DA governs, things are heading in the right direction, step by step. 

That is why each and every South African can make history with their vote! Every vote for the DA will help to make history in our country. It will help to end corruption, to start job creating economic growth, to provide guaranteed university funding to all qualifying matrics, and 1 million internships for people looking to get their first job. It will be a vote to cut red tape and establish a National Venture Capital Fund to provide start-up funding for new businesses.

Some people say that even if the DA wins office in a number of provinces that we are still a long way from national government. This is the wrong way to look at it. When one province performs well, the entire country is better off. And when two provinces perform well, the other seven know that they better fire their corrupt governments because they want what the other two have got! 

That is why every single DA vote is crucial. Each vote takes us closer to the Union Buildings.  

Next week, we can win the Western Cape again. We can grow our majority. We can send the message to the ANC that the days of them ruining this province are long gone. But it is only possible if every person who stands together for change and together for jobs turns out to vote for the DA on May 7. 

One thing is clear: it was not by chance that we have delivered the country's best performance in job creation, health, education and access to basic services. It is not by chance that this is the most inclusive economy in the country. The Western Cape Story has been possible because you, the voters, supported the DA. 

The dream of April 27 1994 - the dream of a better life for all - is alive where the DA governs.

But our work is not done. We have only just begun. The voters in the 2014 elections have a straightforward choice to make when they go to the polls on May 7. Either you can elect an ANC that would undo the progress we have made, or a DA government that will build on our achievements.

Stand with the DA on May 7.

Stand with the DA to make history!

Vote to win the Western Cape! 

Issued by the DA, April 26 2014

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