ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa said on Friday at the party’s Siyanqoba rally in Soweto that government will speedily conclude a local government skills audit and change the way in which municipal managers, chief financial officers and other senior officials are appointed.
Addressing thousands of ANC supporters at Thokoza Park, Soweto, Ramaphosa said there could no longer be more jobs for pals in municipalities run by the governing party after the local government elections.
On November 1, South Africans will go to the polls in the sixth round of local government elections since the country’s democratic transition in 1994.
Voters will be able to choose among 60,000 candidates and more than 300 political parties to elect councillors for 257 municipalities
“We are committed to be more accountable and more responsive as directed by ANC’s 54th national congress. One of our priorities is to improve the qualities and capabilities of officials in municipalities. Our renewal process is not just for representatives, but also for officials,” said Ramaphosa.
He said appointed councillors must continue to live among our people and be accountable.
“We will not accept councillors who will run from problems. They must be intimate with the challenges our people are experiencing and work with them to resolve those challenges,” said Ramaphosa.
“We have also brought young people as councillor candidates. They are well educated, well experienced and we want them to lead our municipalities. 46% of our candidates are women. They will be trained and inducted to clearly understand the task at hand.”
He added that the ANC wants competent mayors who will demonstrate that they can perform and who will put the interests of our people first.
The president added that it was at local government level where the recovery and transformation of the economy ought to take place.
“This means that we must maintain local infrastructure and provide reliable and consistent services,” said Ramaphosa.
He promised that in this new dispensation of the ANC, local government officials would be afforded the space to work without undue political interference.
He urged residents of Soweto to support the ANC at the polls on Monday and give it the mandate to rebuild and renew the country’s cities, towns, villages and rural areas.
“By working together, we will win,” said Ramaphosa.
“And so we ask you, the people of South Africa, to vote for the African National Congress. We ask you to go to the polls on Monday and vote for this organisation that has changed our lives. We ask you to join us in building better communities.”
Political analysts said this week that the upcoming local government elections largely amount to a referendum on the ANC and Ramaphosa’s presidency since he took over from former president Jacob Zuma’s so-called ‘nine wasted years’.
In the 2016 elections, the ANC experienced massive local election losses for the first time ever.
Some of the countries’ largest metros and economic centers, including City of Johannesburg, City of Tshwane, and the Nelson Mandela Bay, went to the opposition because the ANC could not obtain outright majorities and had to enter coalitions with other parties.
The ANC’s final rally was overshadowed by Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi being involved in a car accident.
ANC Head of Elections Fikile Mbalula confirmed that Losi had been involved in an accident while travelling to the rally.
- Inside Politics