COSATU condemns provincial government's R6 million as political gimmick

COSATU dismisses the announcement of Premier Zille as a political gimmick to distract attention from the inability of the DA to address the problem of gangs and violence on the Cape Flats. The Premier has not been able to lead the Province and its people to address the problems of people on the Cape Flats in respect of the crisis of crime.

The R6 million was taken from the education budget where already there is underfunding of township schools in respect of the basic requirements in the schools in relation to the old model C schools [white]. There are many areas of the budget that brings non-urgent conveniences to the white wealthy, where money could have been taken from but it is the poor township kids who are again disregarded by the Premier. The inability of the Premier on behalf of the DA in this Province to come up with a comprehensive plan to respond to the crisis, is a sad state of affairs.

This further demonstrates the incompetence of the people tasked with leading the response to crime. Dan Plato is asking the gangs to sell drugs without shooting, which in effect gives them a carte blanche to sell drugs to the kids of the townships. The JP Smith and his crime interventions has proven to be ineffective in addressing the crisis in Manenberg along with the other gimmicks that he has imported from other parts of the world at a great waste of money.

This response from the DA and the Provincial Government shows their incompetence in dealing with the crisis of violence on the Cape Flats as Manenberg is not the only area of crisis. Every township has the same problems but nothing comprehensive is announced in this respect.  The press statement was just another indication of the Premier playing politics with the lives of our people.

COSATU is now more convinced than ever that the Premier has no regard for our working people in the townships and has a complete inability to inspire and lead the people of the Province in confronting this crisis.   They have not emerged with any plan to bring confidence to the people of the Province on the way forward.

We are now calling on the Religious leaders to step in and unite the people of the W Cape in confronting this crisis. The religious leaders must call together all the social groupings and all the levels of Government as well as the different agencies of the State. The church leaders must now step in and lead the people of this Province as the Government has no political will or ability to do this and gangsters are now acting with impunity.

Statement issued by Tony Ehrenreich, COSATU Western Cape provincial secretary, August 19 2013

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