Note to Editors: The following speeches were delivered in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature today, 22 February 2024, during the debate on the State of the Province Address (SOPA).
The Gauteng Premier’s SOPA speech could be compared to repeatedly listening to a terrible song on a faulty audio player. All the Premier did was copy and paste his 2023 speech, with no progress to show on the promises he made then.
Simple wins, such as Gauteng’s role as the province’s economic hub, were hailed even though they had little to do with the Premier Lesufi-led administration.
Missing from the address was the unfiltered truth that the people of Gauteng are suffering because of a range of challenges.
The unemployment rate in Gauteng has increased to 2 565 000 for the fourth quarter of the 2023/2024 financial year. Further demonstrating that Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s job-creation programmes, such as Nasi Ispani, are not having the anticipated results.
Crime casts a long shadow, eroding our sense of safety, hindering investment, and stifling the dreams of our Gauteng residents. Yet, the Premier continues to rely on impractical and unreachable safety measures like drones and panic buttons rather than focusing on the basics: strengthening law enforcement and tackling the underlying causes of crime.
Gauteng municipalities continue to deteriorate under the ANC leadership due to inefficiency and corruption, which is exacerbated by the incompetence of ANC deployed comrades. Without real solutions, the Premier has relied on throwing money at issues and hoping they disappear.
Creating jobs necessitates an active role for the state in investing in enablers such as good infrastructure, a reliable energy supply, and potable water, all of which are in short supply in Gauteng.
The people of Gauteng have a choice in 2024: vote for the current government’s failed promises, which are likely to fail again, or vote to be rescued from corruption, crime, unemployment, load-shedding, and dilapidated schools and clinics by voting for the DA, who, while not perfect, has proven to govern better.
- Speech by Solly Msimanga MPL ,Leader of the Official Opposition- Gauteng
- Speech by Fred Nel MPL, DA Gauteng Caucus Chief Whip
- Speech by Ruhan Robinson MPL, DA Gauteng Shadow MEC for Finance
- Speech by Mike Moriarty MPL, DA Gauteng Spokesperson for Finance
- Speech by Crezane Bosch MPL, Gauteng Shadow MEC for Community Safety
- Speech by Kingsol Chabalala MPL, DA Emfuleni North Constituency Head
- Speech by Nicola Du Plessis MPL, DA Gauteng Spokesperson for Economic Development