Use the power of your vote to build a better future

12 June 2015

Note to Editors: The following remarks were made by the DA Leader, Mmusi Maimane MP, in Roodepan, Kimberley, Northern Cape, on the final leg of the national Freedom, Fairness & Opportunity Tour, ahead of the #Vision2029 launch on Saturday, 13 June 2015.

My fellow South Africans

Thank you for welcoming me to the Northern Cape, and in particular, to your community here in Roodepan.

I am glad that we have this opportunity to engage before I wrap up my Freedom, Fairness and Opportunity Tour.

In fact, this is the last stop of the tour. I have now visited many communities in every single province in South Africa. And everywhere I have gone, I have been struck by the same two things:

The first is that, no matter where in South Africa you live, there are four common enemies: inequality, unemployment, crime and corruption.

And the second is that South Africans are not broken by the challenges these enemies represent. South African people have a strong, unbreakable spirit. 

I have been inspired by the hope and belief so many people have in the future of our country. And by their willingness to work hard for a better future.

I have come to realise, over the past three weeks, that there are many of us who want the same things for our country. Together, we will make this place great.

I call this tour the Freedom, Fairness and Opportunity Tour, because these are the three core values that drive the DA to build a better future for all South Africans. And on this tour I have been speaking to communities about what this future under a DA government would look like.

But I have also been listening. I have heard stories about the tough conditions that many people across the country have to live under – about people’s daily battles to get anyone to hear their complaints.

I have heard about some of the problems right here in Roodepan that you have to deal with.

I know about the housing backlogs in your community. I know about the poor build quality of the houses, and how millions are spent on fixing houses that are falling apart, instead of being spent on new houses.

I know that thousands of people in this province don’t have access to flush toilets, and must still use buckets. This, despite big promises by the Premier to get rid of bucket toilets for good.

I have heard reports of the crime here in Roodepan – about gangs and drugs, and about the rising number of sexual assaults in the area.

I have heard about the high rate of teenage pregnancies here, and how this is ruining the dreams of thousands of school girls.

I have heard about your overcrowded schools.

And, of course, I know all about the problem of unemployment here in the Northern Cape. 43% of people in this province don’t have work. That’s almost half the adult population of the province.

This is not the South Africa we dream about.

But in order to change this, your government must put you first. They must serve you, and not the other way round.

And not only must they serve you – they must fear you, the voters. Your government must know that you have the power to fire them if they don’t do their job.

The ANC government here in the Northern Cape does not do this. They don’t put you first, because they learn from their leader, President Zuma. If he can look after only himself and his cronies, then so can they.

Here in the Northern Cape you have leaders like Finance MEC, John Block, who is far too busy protecting his own interests to even think of looking out for you. John Block is so busy trying to stay ahead of the law on corruption and tender fraud charges, that he has no time to serve the people of the Northern Cape.

But all that can change. And the power to change it lies with you.

You can teach this government a lesson in democracy by firing them with your vote. If you are unhappy with how they represent you, it’s not only your right to fire them – it’s your job.

And you can start next year, in the 2016 Local Government Elections. 

You are the only people who can make Roodepan better.

Tomorrow, in Soweto, we will launch Vision 2029. This is the DA’s plan for a safe, prosperous, non-racial South Africa. A South Africa where every child in every community has the opportunity to grow up to become whatever he or she dreams of.

This is a South Africa where our schools are truly safe places of learning. Where a child in Roodepan has the same chance of receiving a quality education as a child in one of Cape Town’s suburbs.

A South Africa where our economy grows, creating millions of jobs. 

A South Africa where no one has to use a bucket toilet, where houses are built properly and where children are protected from gangs, drugs and abuse.

A South Africa where corrupt politicians cannot lay their hands on the money that was meant for communities such as yours.

We call it Vision 2029, because it describes what South Africa will look like after 10 years of a DA-led national government.

I want you to join us in building this South Africa. The sooner communities like yours join hands with the DA, the sooner we can begin.

Thank you.

Issued by the DA, June 12 2015