DA's Solly Msimanga says Lesufi's ANC has run Gauteng into the ground

Gauteng DA leader Solly Msimanga has criticised the government of current premier Panyaza Lesufi, saying the ruling party has run the province down so it's a shadow of its former self.

Msimanga said the challenges faced by the province's residents are endless and require the capable, accountable and transparent government his party can deliver.

“Corruption is running rampant, unemployment is at an all-time high, crime has reached crisis levels, asbestos schools are still prevalent, and thousands are starving because the Gauteng provincial government (GPG) has stopped funding nonprofit organisations (NPOs).”

The DA provincial leader said Gauteng was the economic hub of the country and should be rich in opportunities — however, that was not the case.

“Sadly, our province's resources have been and continue to be looted by corrupt politicians, officials and a few individuals who are affiliated with the ruling party. This has collapsed many municipalities, resulting in them being unable to deliver basic services such as refuse removal and fixing potholes.”

However, Msimanga said residents of the province have an opportunity to turn things around and usher in a new government.

“We have an opportunity to change the lives of our residents, who are subjected to high costs of living, poor service delivery, limited access to water and ongoing load-shedding.”

As Lesufi prepares to deliver his second state of the province address, on Monday, Msimanga said he was convinced Lesufi would be sticking to the ANC formula of lying unprovoked and tell Gauteng residents that he and his comrades have been working tirelessly on getting Gauteng back to work!

“But, as we all know, this is not true. Instead of going through a list of the current government’s empty promises, I would like to outline the solutions we will put in place to ensure that all our residents have access to basic services, are minimally affected by load-shedding, and have access to essential services such as sanitation and water regularly.”

Msimanga promised that a DA provincial government will ensure that residents live in safer communities by adequately equipping police stations with the necessary resources to effectively prevent and fight crime.

“There are 2.5-million unemployed residents in the province and 86,000 discouraged job seekers. The government’s job is not to create jobs but rather to create an environment that will enable the private sector to invest in the economy, unlocking more employment opportunities.”

The DA leader criticised E-tolls as a burden and unwanted system that was foisted upon residents — saying that his party has a plan to repurpose them.

“A commission of inquiry into E-tolls has found that this system is not working and should be reviewed. In 2018, various utterances were made by the current government that this system would be scrapped before the 2019 general elections.

“We have been promised that E-tolls have been scrapped, yet our road users are still being billed for this unwanted system. Gauteng’s portion of the e-toll debt is R12,9bn and increases daily as it attracts interest. The longer it takes for a model to be adopted by the provincial government, the more this debt will increase.”

Instead, a DA government plans to use e-toll gantries as a monitoring tool for traffic.

“Where the rules of the road are not followed, fines can be issued to those users, which in turn generates income for the province. Furthermore, we believe that trucks should only be allowed on the road during certain times of the day and that e-toll gantries can be used to ensure that this rule is enforced.”

Msimanga proposed decentralisation of the railway infrastructure, accusing the national government of failing to maintain rail networks.

“Commuters who are dependent on this form of transport are being let down. Residents who are unable to get to and from work on time using public transport contribute less to the economy. Gauteng must have the authority to manage and run its own railway lines.”

The party's premier candidate vowed to tackle load-shedding by engaging independent power producers to procure additional electricity in the province.

He promised to address healthcare challenges by recommending that hospital CEOs and managers at all health facilities in the province be given powers to procure additional resources they need and ensure that healthcare facilities are maintained.