Note to editors: This is an extract of a speech prepared for delivery today at Helenvale in Port Elizabeth. This area is hard-hit by crime and gangsterism.
Fellow South Africans,
I am here today because I have heard that crime is out of control in Helenvale. And I know that you are tired of living in fear of the gangsters and the drug dealers. I want to tell you that you don't have to live like this. You can choose a different future on May 18.
In 2006, the people of Cape Town made a different choice. They too, were sick and tired of living in fear. They wanted their City to take their safety seriously. And so they made their feelings known at the ballot box.
I am not going to pretend that we have eradicated crime in Cape Town. There is still a long way to go. But we are moving in the right direction. Since the DA took over Cape Town, crime in the city centre has been cut by 90%.
Last year, there were 955 arrests for drug-related crime, compared to just 180 arrests five years previously in 2005. The expansion of the metro police, coupled with a massive investment in social infrastructure like parks, libraries and youth centres has cut down the murder rate in Khayelitsha by 33%.
How did we do it?
We did it be turning around a demoralised and dysfunctional metro police force. We increased the policing budget so that we could employ more police officers and get better equipment. We took initiatives to boost the morale of the force. And we established specialised units to fight priority crimes.
The Ghost Squad stop drivers who are speeding or driving while drunk. The Copperheads focus on metal theft. The Drug Busters raid the "tik" dens and drug houses that make it impossible for residents in those areas to live a decent life.
I didn't come all the way to Port Elizabeth just to tell you about Cape Town. But it is a very real example of what we can do to make your lives better if we are elected to govern here.
You don't even have a metro police force in Port Elizabeth. It is one of the reasons that crime is getting worse. One of the first things the DA will do if we win the election here is to establish a metro police force in PE. We don't see why you should be the only city in South Africa without its own police force.
The good news is that, for the first time, the DA stands a very good chance of governing Port Elizabeth. This is going to be one of the closely contested areas in the country.
That is why we need every person who supports the DA to go out and vote on election day. And we need people who have never voted DA before to give us a chance to turn things around in Port Elizabeth.
You don't have to be a loyal DA supporter to vote DA on May 18. This is a local election. It is not about party loyalty, it is about whether or not you get the service delivery you deserve. All we are asking is that you lend us your vote for this election. If you don't like what we do with it, you can take it back at the next election.
Every vote will count on May 18. That is why it is so important that you go out and vote. Your vote can determine whether or not you get a metro police force here. Your vote can make a very real difference to your life.
Your vote can win it in Port Elizabeth!
You can choose five more years of fear. Or you can choose the DA.
So, whatever you do, make sure you vote on 18 May.
And vote DA.
Because the DA delivers for all!
Issued by the DA, May 5 2011
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