Use your vote to elect a government that puts you first

14 November 2015

Note to Editors: The following remarks were delivered by the DA Leader at the Msobomvu Community Hall, Butterworth, Eastern Cape. 

My fellow South Africans,

I feel honoured to be here with you in Butterworth today, in this special part of the Eastern Cape. I can understand why people here are so attached to the place. It’s not only incredibly beautiful, but there is a real sense of history that connects people to the land.

This province has also produced many of our greatest leaders. In many ways, the struggle was born here in the Eastern Cape. But today, a different struggle continues for many people of this province.

Today, the struggle here is for basic services like water and electricity. The struggle here is for the right to a decent education. The struggle here is to find work, to become part of the economy, to escape poverty. And unfortunately your struggle today has been forgotten by Jacob Zuma’s ANC.

Not all that long ago, the people living in the old bantustans suffered because there were no opportunities. They were overlooked; forgotten. Then came the promise of freedom in 1994, and everything was meant to change.

For a while it looked as if it would. Under Presidents Mandela and Mbeki, progress was made. But today, under Jacob Zuma’s ANC, many people here are once again forgotten. The symbolic freedom of 1994 never became a freedom you can use.

This is rich land and it has supported your people for hundreds of years. It should continue to support you for hundreds more, but many people here are losing hope and leaving. Jobs are few and life is hard, and every year thousands of people from areas just like yours pack their bags and head for the cities, hoping to make a better life there.

Leaving the place of your birth – your ancestral home – must surely be one of the hardest things to do in life. Most people would only think of doing so when they have run out of all other options. But I’d like to tell you today that this place – not only Butterworth, but the whole Eastern Cape – can be great again.

There is so much potential in this place and its people. Just imagine what could happen here if you had the help and support of a government that understood your challenges; a government that really served the people and helped create opportunities for them; a government that made you their number one priority.

The only government you know here is Jacob Zuma’s ANC. If you don’t trust or believe what a political party says because of the way they have treated you, then I really don’t blame you. If you’ve never experienced a government that cares, then you have no way of knowing that it doesn’t have to be this way.

You see, Jacob Zuma’s ANC only knows one way to govern: If you have connections to the government, to the party or to your councillor, then you are an insider. If you have none of these connections, then you are an outsider. Insiders get the jobs. Insiders get service delivery. Insiders move to the top of housing lists. Insiders get government tenders. But outsiders get nothing.

This is how Jacob Zuma runs things at the very top of the ANC. And everyone in his party, from cabinet ministers all the way down to local councillors, follow his example. He even laughs when he tells people that it’s “cold outside the ANC”. We all know what this means – if you’re not connected, you simply won’t get ahead in life.

In a real democracy, everyone shares the resources. In a real democracy, services get rolled out to all communities. In a real democracy, job opportunities are available to all, regardless of who you know or who you vote for. Public money belongs to everyone and not to those in power. In a real democracy, the President prioritises his country and its people.

At the DA you won’t find a culture of insiders and outsiders. This is because we believe in the values of Freedom, Fairness and Opportunity for every single South African. Where we govern, these three values form the basis of everything we do.

We believe that real Freedom – the kind of freedom that you can use – is about more than just being able to vote for your government. Freedom means having a job, being part of the economy, being able to build your own future, feeling safe in your community. This is the kind of Freedom we fight for.

At the DA, when we speak of Fairness, we mean a society where hard work is rewarded. A society where money meant for the people isn’t stolen by those in power. A society without insiders and outsiders. This is the Fairness we fight for.

And when we speak of Opportunity, we mean access to quality education, access to meaningful work and access to business opportunities. A society where a child born in Butterworth has the same chance at fulfilling her dreams as a child born in Sandton. These are the Opportunities we fight for in the DA.

None of these things are going to happen for you under your current government. You will never be truly free until you can own the land on which you live, but Zuma’s ANC government has no plans to weaken the power the chiefs have over the land. Under Zuma’s ANC, you will forever live on someone else’s land. Under Zuma’s ANC, you will never be in control of your own future.

Every person wants to have a say in how their life turns out. It’s what makes us human. We want to control our own destinies. We want to be able to provide for our loved ones, protect them. We want to live a life we truly value. And to do this, we cannot rely on favours and hand-outs. We need to be empowered.

Everything the DA does is about empowering you, the individual. We believe it is the government’s job to make it possible for every single person to take charge of their own life and create their own destiny.

This is why it is so important for us to bring basic services like water and electricity to every single household. This is why a quality education, from Grade 1 to university, means so much to us. This is why we believe in giving people ownership – the title deed – to the land they live on. Because these things empower you.

If this is what you want for yourself, your family and your community, then you must make it happen. The DA can’t help empower you until we’re in a position to do so. Once we run your municipality or your provincial or national government, we can start making the changes that will improve your life. But until then, there is very little we can do for you.

So it is now up to you to make that change, starting with next year’s local government election. Your vote has the power to fire a government that doesn’t work for you and to hire one that will. If you put your trust in the DA and we disappoint you, then you must fire us too. But at least give us one chance to show you what we can do.

I thank you!

Issued by the DA, 14 November 2015