Gauteng legislators have taken their chance to criticise the province’s premier.
Members of the Provincial Legislature (MPL) were allowed time on Thursday to comment on Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s State of the Province Address (Sopa), delivered on Monday evening.
Water, infrastructure, and expenditure were common themes, with one ANC MPL suggesting a novel way to raise money to give the province a greater pool of resources.
Let’s not be ‘tone deaf’
DA Gauteng leader Solly Msimanga repeated an offer of unity with Lesufi on the grounds that good ideas should not be ignored simply because they come from a political opponent.
He called for all the mayors and committee executives to band together to develop a provincial master plan with measurable targets.
“Until such time as we come around the table and say here is the infrastructure masterplan, municipalities will not be able to then deal with things on their own,” he said.
This extended to public transport, with Msimanga saying it was pointless talking about high-speed rail when basic train services were scarce.
“What are we saying about those who need transport every morning to go to and from workspaces. That is what needs to be preoccupying our minds,” Msimanga suggested.
He urged the premier to be mindful of public utterances to avoid sounding detached from the general public.
“Let us be very careful of the statements we make out there. Let us be careful not to sound like we are tone deaf and cannot hear the plight of the people.”
Msimanga highlighted the water crisis, saying any comparison to the Western Cape’s flirtation with Day Zero was false, as Gauteng had an abundance of water.
He urged Lesufi to communicate openly with residents about the water crisis, saying water tankers were bleeding the budget dry.
“It’s now costing a billion per municipality – the metros. It means there are certain services that are not being delivered because money is made available for these water tankers,” Msimanga stated.
In Gauteng, ‘efficiency is a privilege’
MK party’s Buysiwe Xaba said Gauteng was the country’s economic heartbeat, but mused that “engines do not run on speeches”.
Xaba argued that the province was structured so that access to services was far easier for the wealthy than for the poor.
“If Gauteng truly wants to be the engine of South Africa, we must stop building a province where efficiency is a privilege.
“This legislation must commit to a simple test; does the decision give people more time back, or does it take more from those who already have the least?” said Xaba.
The ANC’s Thulani Kunene went off script, using his time in the provincial legislature to make a point about geopolitics.
He declared the United States’s sanctions against Cuba illegal, stating the current oil embargo was a gross human rights violation.
“Trying to starve 11 million to death is evil. It is satanic. Cuba is a peaceful nation that poses no threat to the Americans.
“We have our children in Cuba studying to become doctors and engineers. They are also affected by these satanic sanctions,” said Kunene.
‘Not that same man’
The ANC’s Lesego Makhubela defended Lesufi, saying he would usher in a world defined by “robotics, science and innovation, artificial intelligence, drones and electric cars”.
He praised Lesufi for his drive to establish schools of specialisation, claiming the programmes had received international recognition.
“Your vision needs funding, but the challenge is that our fiscus is rapidly shrinking at an alarming rate.
“80% of these online gambling operators are operating in Gauteng. This is money we are losing on a yearly basis that we are supposed to be taxing, that we are supposed to be raising revenue to fund your ideas,” he said.
Lesufi on Monday listed a R4 billion film production site at the Lanseria Smart City, with the EFF’s Moshe Koma noting how big plans for Lanseria have been mentioned in all of Lesufi’s Sopas.
“At this rate madam speaker, we as the EFF are tempted to ask the premier to host the State of Lanseria Address just to understand what is happening in Lanseria,” he said.
Gauging the premier’s energy since taking office, Koma noted a change in Lesufi that he felt mirrored the province’s fortunes.
“The Lesufi we saw at Nasrec is not the same man. He sounded defeated; he sounded like a man overwhelmed by promises failed to deliver.
“The promises are repeated, the figures grow bigger, but the lived reality of our people remains the same,” Koma stated.
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