News / National
ANC councillors reject Ramaphosa's call to follow DA
2 hrs ago | 114 Views
DA federal chairperson Helen Zille has welcomed President Cyril Ramaphosa's suggestion that her party's record in local government should serve as a model for ANC councillors, saying she hopes the whole country will take notice.
However, some ANC councillors pushed back, arguing that praising the DA is the same as undermining their own party.
Zille was responding to comments made by Ramaphosa during a meeting with more than 6,000 ANC councillors from across the country at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.
The president urged councillors to look to their DA counterparts for guidance on running municipalities successfully, pointing to Cape Town and Stellenbosch as examples of effective administration.
Zille added that this wasn't the first time Ramaphosa had used the DA's governance record as a benchmark for good service delivery. She said:
"The president is right, competition is important in the democracy, and he is also right that if you compare ANC government to DA government, the DA government is by far better.
"It is important for the president to recognise this, and I think the whole country will take note."
The DA quickly jumped on the opportunity, sharing Ramaphosa's comments praising its governance record on social media.
Protea Glen ward 135 councillor Phelelani Sindani said Ramaphosa's remarks should be seen in the context of a government of local unity, where working together across party lines is encouraged. Sindani said:
"From that point of view, the statement of the president is welcomed. But from the political point of view, I don't think he was supposed to even go as far as that.
"It would have been correct for the president to say there are other municipalities that are doing better than the ANC.
"The platform in which he delivered this message makes it seem like he wants to be like Mandela, accommodating the very same people who are oppressing us.
"Praising the DA in an ANC meeting is sabotaging the ANC. It would have been more understandable if he were addressing all councillors, not just us."
Pennyville ward 68 councillor Msimelo Lobi said he agreed with the President. Said Lobi:
"But when you check the difference, DA municipalities collect revenue from residents. Our municipalities depend mainly on grants, which makes it difficult to perform at the same level.
"In Cape Town people pay for services. In Soweto people don't want to pay for electricity. Another issue is stability. The DA doesn't change councillors often, while in the ANC there's constant reshuffling.
"I don't agree that we are not capacitated. I, for one, have an engineering background and went to UNISA to do my economics and management science as I was trying to capacitate myself.
"DA councillors have researchers and all the support, and it becomes easy for them to know what is happening.
"There is nothing much of engineering I am doing when I am sitting in a council meeting.
"Meanwhile, DA councillors are able to give advice using their law qualifications."
Political and governance analyst Sandile Swana said Ramaphosa's statement was a disgrace. Said Swana:
"Ramaphosa needs to admit that the Polokwane slate and Zuma slate collapsed good governance in SA.
"The DA governance has not met or surpassed the record of Thabo Mbeki in terms of governance on a number of indicators.
"So if they want to learn how to run municipalities, they must go back to people who did things correctly, who were also ANC members."
However, some ANC councillors pushed back, arguing that praising the DA is the same as undermining their own party.
Zille was responding to comments made by Ramaphosa during a meeting with more than 6,000 ANC councillors from across the country at FNB Stadium in Johannesburg.
The president urged councillors to look to their DA counterparts for guidance on running municipalities successfully, pointing to Cape Town and Stellenbosch as examples of effective administration.
Zille added that this wasn't the first time Ramaphosa had used the DA's governance record as a benchmark for good service delivery. She said:
"The president is right, competition is important in the democracy, and he is also right that if you compare ANC government to DA government, the DA government is by far better.
"It is important for the president to recognise this, and I think the whole country will take note."
The DA quickly jumped on the opportunity, sharing Ramaphosa's comments praising its governance record on social media.
Protea Glen ward 135 councillor Phelelani Sindani said Ramaphosa's remarks should be seen in the context of a government of local unity, where working together across party lines is encouraged. Sindani said:
"From that point of view, the statement of the president is welcomed. But from the political point of view, I don't think he was supposed to even go as far as that.
"It would have been correct for the president to say there are other municipalities that are doing better than the ANC.
"The platform in which he delivered this message makes it seem like he wants to be like Mandela, accommodating the very same people who are oppressing us.
"Praising the DA in an ANC meeting is sabotaging the ANC. It would have been more understandable if he were addressing all councillors, not just us."
Pennyville ward 68 councillor Msimelo Lobi said he agreed with the President. Said Lobi:
"But when you check the difference, DA municipalities collect revenue from residents. Our municipalities depend mainly on grants, which makes it difficult to perform at the same level.
"In Cape Town people pay for services. In Soweto people don't want to pay for electricity. Another issue is stability. The DA doesn't change councillors often, while in the ANC there's constant reshuffling.
"I don't agree that we are not capacitated. I, for one, have an engineering background and went to UNISA to do my economics and management science as I was trying to capacitate myself.
"DA councillors have researchers and all the support, and it becomes easy for them to know what is happening.
"There is nothing much of engineering I am doing when I am sitting in a council meeting.
"Meanwhile, DA councillors are able to give advice using their law qualifications."
Political and governance analyst Sandile Swana said Ramaphosa's statement was a disgrace. Said Swana:
"Ramaphosa needs to admit that the Polokwane slate and Zuma slate collapsed good governance in SA.
"The DA governance has not met or surpassed the record of Thabo Mbeki in terms of governance on a number of indicators.
"So if they want to learn how to run municipalities, they must go back to people who did things correctly, who were also ANC members."
Source - sowetan
