The African National Congress (ANC) has lost the plot for the future, the Democratic Alliance (DA) said on Saturday.
”The ANC is so busy tearing itself apart and plundering the public purse and pursuing narrow racist agendas that they have forgotten the people who put them in power,” said DA leader Tony Leon during a Western Cape DA congress.
”They are too busy arguing among themselves. They cannot beat us, they have lost the plot.”
The only party that can beat the DA is the DA itself, said Leon.
He said if his party pulled together and stood united then it would lead the Western Cape again in 2009.
”It is vital for the party to win in the Western Cape in order to offer voters irresistible proof that we can make a positive difference in our people’s lives.
”We have proven ourselves at municipal level, now we must do so at provincial level and thus demonstrate that we are a strong and compelling alternative to the ANC at the national level too,” said Leon.
While the DA was developing in the Western Cape, the ANC was lurching from one crisis to another, he said.
The housing crisis in the province was a glaring example of the ruling party’s inability to govern, said Leon.
The housing department faced problems like under-expenditure of the budget by R141-million, an increasing number of informal settlements and an overall housing backlog of 320 000.
The N2 Gateway project, initiated last year, was touted as a national pilot for low-income houses.
”Yet, while 22 000 units were expected to be built, little more than 300 have been allocated to beneficiaries,” said Leon.
”In contrast, our record in governance since taking over in municipalities across this province gives practical expression to our ideal of clean, efficient and transparent administration.”
Leon said Cape Town mayor Helen Zille’s coalition had cut debt by R1-billion in just seven months.
He said millions of rands had also been released for the development of housing projects and the city was on schedule for the 2010 Soccer World Cup programme.
The city’s police, law enforcement and traffic departments would also be integrated into a single metro police service.
”We must capitalise on these successes, making sure the voters are aware of our achievements.
”And we must drive home the message that we can prove that life is better under the DA,” said Leon. — Sapa