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KNYSNA NEWS - DA chief whip and MP John Steenhuisen visited Knysna for the first time when he hosted a public meeting at Knysna High School on Monday night and addressed an audience of about 100 people from Wards 9 and 10.
Steenhuisen spoke of national issues affecting South Africans, and started by saying, "No South African can deny that they dodged bullets when Cyril Ramaphosa was elected as president.
“The alternative would’ve been disastrous for the country, our economy would've suffered as investors would have held back, and state capture could've been prolonged.”
'Honeymoon almost over'
He said that the honeymoon period for Ramaphosa was, however, nearing the end, and the DA as opposition would hold the ruling party accountable, in terms of the law, as well as the implementation of policies and procedures.
“We cannot abandon our role as the opposition – a strong opposition makes a strong government. Problems emanate from a parliament that is not robust enough,” he said, referring to the ANC's "softness" when dealing with state capture – which ultimately led to Zuma being "treated like a deity".
He added that Ramaphosa's rise to the presidency meant compromises, in the form of appointing David Mabuza as deputy president.
Mabuza 'ruthless, cunning'
“That decision should scare us, because Mabuza ran a scheme of state capture in Mpumalanga, where 91 members of the ANC and media disappeared. He is ruthless and cunning, and he wants to be number one.”
Steenhuisen said that another compromise was the retention of three ministers, Malusi Gigaba (Home Affairs), Bathabile Dlamini (Social Development) and Nomvula Mokonyane (Water and Sanitation).
He explained that each of these ministers put South Africa at great risk, sometimes were responsible for missing millions of rands, and failed in their duties to the citizens of the country.
Watch two videos below.
The public meeting was attended by less than 100 residents.
Land stance also 'a compromise'
The third compromise for Ramaphosa, said Steenhuisen, is the land expropriation without compensation issue. "Unfortunately one of the first acts is to open a debate to amend the Constitution, which in essence is supporting the EFF motion," Steenhuisen said.
“We need to first capitalise on the joy and the exposure that has resulted on Zuma's departure, by attracting investment in SA. We also acknowledge the fact that there’s skewed ownership of land, there's inequality, but this needs to be dealt with in an effective and fair way,” he said, referring to Section 25 of the Constitution, which he said is actually about property ownership.
“If we allow this amendment to the Constitution, what's next for negotiation? Freedom of speech? Freedom of association?”
3 key things to change
Steenhuisen then spoke of the changes under Ramaphosa's leadership over the past three months, such as the changes at the Hawks, SARS and other departments that are being cleaned out, and that this needs to be sustained and expanded.
He said there are three key things that need to be done early with a new presidency: a radical overhaul of the education system; a stronger crime-fighting police department and justice system to address the high crime rates; and the building of the economy to attract skills and jobs, to address the high unemployment situation in the country.
During the Q & A session, a resident asked why the good work of the DA is hardly ever mentioned in mainstream media.
'Hostile, anti-DA media'
“Because we have a hostile media, who are anti-DA,” Steenhuisen replied, and referred to Independent Media and its boss Iqbal Surve.
Steenhuisen was also asked when the DA will take over government.
“We are getting there. I don't think it will happen during the next election, and I think if we get there it will be a coalition, which is not always easy,” he replied.
Another resident asked if the DA was in a mess, and if rumours of a looming split in the party were factual.
“We are not perfect, there are issues and we are addressing them. Recent action in George is a good example that we deal with actions, we don't just brush it under the carpet and let them continue,” he said, speaking of the suspension of the George mayor.
DA split news 'poor journalism'
“We need to work here, we need to rebuild trust, and you can hold us accountable,” Steenhuisen said, and denied any split was looming, saying that reports were the product of poor journalism.
Asked what he would do about it, Steenhuizen replied: “We'll challenge it, we'll go to the ombudsman”.
Residents also expressed their unhappiness with the local DA politics, saying that infighting is damaging the town, and that services such as the water network and roads need to be addressed as a matter of urgency. There was even a suggestion that the municipality be put under curatorship.
“Knysna was never worse than it is now. Some residents do not want to vote DA again,” said a resident.
Steenhuisen, by his own admission, said that he was not too familiar with the local dynamics in Knysna, and that this was his first trip to the town. But he also mentioned that issues brought to his attention will be looked into and he challenged residents to join the DA to root out problems, fight corruption, and ensure service delivery.
“The best way to fight it is from the inside,” he said.
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