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12 Apr, 2014
Address: by the UDM President, Mr Bantu Holomisa at a UDM Elections Rally in OR Tambo Sports Centre, Khayelitsha
• Leaders of the UDM in the Western Cape • UDM Public representatives • My fellow South Africans WELCOME Welcome to this rally of the United Democratic Movement (UDM). Thank you for spending your time with us; thank you for coming to listen to what the UDM believes is needed so that we can transform South Africa into a Winning Nation. We hope that you leave this rally, equipped with the necessary knowledge to make an informed decision when you cast your vote on 7 May 2014. You are today part of an historic event. This meeting is a demonstration that it is possible for us to take charge of our country’s future, because we have the guts to take responsibility as stakeholders and investors in our country’s future. It is therefore my honour, on this day, to share this platform with a friend and comrade, Mr Mbhazima Shilowa. Welcome to the club Sam! Thank you for aligning yourself, and your followers, with the dreams and ideals of the UDM i.e. achieve an equitable society and a healthy democracy in South Africa. STATE THE NATION Every five years, South Africans meet at the voting station to choose the political party, which they think, will best govern their province and this country. The voters will reflect on the progress made over the last five years, however, corruption sticks out like a sore thumb. Corruption is one of the main reasons why South Africa is downgraded in the international ratings and this negatively impacts on direct foreign investment In the end the voters of this country must decide whether they want another five years of looting and abuse of state resources and the celebration of corruption. The most recent example of this corruption is that government spent millions-and-millions of rands to build a lodge and a “fire pool” for the president at Nkandla. What nauseates many South Africans even further is the flagrant arrogance of the president and his party. They show nothing but disdain – and did not even blink an eye when they launched the unwarranted attack on the Public Protector. President Zuma, is a deployee of the African National Congress (ANC), the people did not elect him to power. The ANC should have summarily dealt with him, as it did when it unceremoniously got rid of President Mbeki, albeit for different reasons. Right now there is much noise in support of the idea that parliament must attend to this fiasco, but – with due respect – parliament has failed to deal with corruption and this includes Nkandla. We know very well what the ANC’s stance is on the matter. Why then should we waste our time; the next Parliament must be given a fresh mandate by the people. Come 7 May, voters must decide whether they want to put their eggs in the ANC’s basket. They must decide whether they want to suffer another five years of looting of state resources. LEVELS OF GOVERNMENT: WHO IS RESPONSIBLE FOR WHAT? There are definite signs that the deal that was struck in 1994, to create a quasi-federal system (i.e. a central government, distinct from the individual governments of the provinces), has enforced racism and tribalism. You are likely to agree with the UDM that the various provinces are not treated the same. If you doubt this, just take a look at the skewed budget allocations and distribution of resources from one province to the next. That said, the Western Cape has a problem that sets it apart from the other eight provinces. More often than not, the provincial and national governments are at loggerheads and they each refuse to employ reason and logic. This practice of grudge politics is counterproductive. Whilst they merrily attack each other, the people wallow in the malaise of poverty, underdevelopment, whilst service delivery is at an all-time low. The Democratic Alliance (DA) and the ANC spend more time slinging mud at each other, instead of focussing on finding solutions, which will have a positive impact on the lives of the Western Cape’s citizens. A side-effect, of this political grandstanding, is that the aforementioned parties are – either wilfully or unwittingly – polarising the people in this province. It is an inescapable reality that this fans the flame of tension between different communities in this province. Amidst the debris of these battles, the people of the Cape Flats still remain forgotten and live in the very same shacks they lived in since the early 80’s. Not the ANC or the DA can claim that they have made a tangible changes to the lives of these people. The only worth that is associated with the poor is that they serve as mere voting cattle. Another reality that seems to escape the powers that be, is that Premier Helen Zille and her government, are not a law unto themselves. Like any other premier, she is accountable to central government – whether she likes it or not. The UDM takes a dim view of both the central (ANC) and the provincial (DA) governments’ inability to swallow their pride, to set their difference aside, to serve the people of this province. SOCIO-ECONOMIC PROBLEMS IN THE PROVINCE One of the socio-economic problems in this province (which of course is not unique) is service delivery protests. It is clear that the provincial administrations of the ANC and the DA turned a blind eye to the poor for decades. The people are so frustrated and angry that the only way in which they can elicit a reaction from government is by burning tires on the streets, blocking highways and tossing stones at innocent road users. The UDM has a strong stance against civil disobedience, but we have some understanding of the plight of these disenfranchised communities. The domino effect then sets in – service delivery protests leads to the perception that Cape Town is an unsafe travel destination. This in turn impacts negatively on much needed income that is generated through tourism. In the meantime our young people are lured into crime, drugs and the gangsterism, because of underdevelopment and lack of education in disadvantaged communities – especially in rural areas and in the townships. Yes, we agree, the South African Police Service should pull up their socks, but the sad reality is that active policing only addresses only the symptoms and not the underlying problem. The DA can hold as many marches as it likes and hand over memorandums to the police, but that solves nothing. The root cause of the problems should be addressed. A UDM government will “go back to basics” i.e. the implementation of the original agenda, which is to ensure a better life for all South Africans. In this regard, our manifesto and policies describe what the UDM will do should it be given an opportunity to govern. ENTREPRENEURSHIP AND WEALTH CREATION The Western Cape is not endowed with mineral riches, but it makes up for that in terms of income generated through tourism, the winemaking industry and other agricultural activities. The problem is that the income generated from the aforementioned sectors very rarely reaches the desperately poor. The gap between the rich and the poor is ever widening in this province. In addition, Cape Town used to be dotted with factories where clothing, shoes and other such products were produced. These factories generated many jobs because they are labour intensive. Where did all these companies disappear to… and why? . The UDM believes that enterprising South Africans should be funded through sectoral banks. In this regard we are particularly reminded of small fishery concerns and aquaculture. CULTURAL HISTORY OF THE PROVINCE No matter from which perspective you look at the Western Cape’s history, the fact remains that this province is endowed with a very rich cultural history. However the indigenous communities have voiced concerns that they are disenfranchised. A UDM delegation recently visited the Khoisan King. The King and his headmen conveyed their feelings that government, on national and provincial levels, have ignored them to a great extent and have undermined the role that traditional leaders play in the Western Cape. CONCLUSION The UDM members and supporters must hit the ground running. Go out there, speak to the people and spread the gospel of the UDM. We cannot afford to sit with our arms folded whilst the majority of our people live in abject poverty, for future generations will judge us harshly, because we let bad things happen on our watch. Time is running out, 7 May is around the corner! Good luck in your campaigning. I thank you
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30 Mar, 2014
Speech: Welcoming former Democratic Alliance and African National Congress members into the UDM Mr Bantu Holomisa, MP (Gugulethu High School, Cape Town)
• Leadership of the UDM in the Western Cape • UDM Public Representatives • The people who live in the Cape Flats and Gugulethu in particular • New members of the UDM • My fellow South Africans Welcome! I am heartened by the many faces I see before me, because we are united in the knowledge that we have a common cause i.e. we want to go back to the original agenda, which is to better the lives of all South Africans. We agree that it is time to take charge of our future and work towards making South Africa a Winning Nation. I specifically welcome the former members of the African National Congress (ANC) and the Democratic Alliance who join the United Democratic Movement’s (UDM) ranks today. Welcome to the club! Visit to the Khoisan King This morning the senior leadership of the Party in the province accompanied me to pay respect to the Khoisan King, the Chiefs and their advisors. We thank them for the honour they bestowed upon us. We discussed the UDM’s position that, as the vanguard of our country’s traditions, norms and future direction, traditional leaders have a critical role to play to ensure our people’s right to dignity is restored and protected. The UDM reiterated its position that traditional leaders, across the country, should be the ones responsible for mobilising their subjects to express opinions and reach consensus on how development in their communities will take place and how economic initiatives will be to the benefit of those communities. We explained our view, that traditional leaders should also be afforded the respect and dignity they deserve and one of the ways of doing so is to standardise the value of perks (e.g. vehicles) across the board for ministers, deputy-ministers, directors general, mayors and traditional leaders, etc. Elections 2014 – State of the Nation We have become a frustrated, if not a jaded nation. If you pick up a paper, or tune into a radio station, you are inundated with stories of corruption, murder and rape and service delivery protest that end with the trigger happy police hurting and killing our fellow South Africans – and so the list goes on. The Comrades in Corruption at the helm of our government Would you agree that our hard-won liberties are being destroyed by corruption and government neglect? The ruling elite has turned corruption into a competitive sport. Not only do they condone each other’s behaviour, they protect their comrades in corruption and celebrate afterward with a double Johnny Walker Blue Label on ice, which they charge to the taxpayers’ tab. It is even worse that this institutionalised corruption has reached the highest office in the country and it is a fact the rest of the world measures us by our president. The story the Public Protector told the nation last Wednesday send shivers down one’s spine. The amount of money spent on the Nkandla Lodge boggles the mind. Does Mr Zuma’s ministerial guard expect South Africans to believe that the “swimming pool” is actually a “fire pool,” just in case one of the compound’s thatched roofs catches fire? If that is in fact the case, we certainly hope someone remembered to install a pump and a very long hosepipe. The ANC and their partners bluster and rant, attacking the Public Protector, hurling personal insults and swearing at her – and all the while President Zuma keeps quiet. Do you think spending R250 million on our President’s homestead is right when so many South Africans live in abject poverty? One thing is certain, the incumbent leaders of government can no longer take the moral high ground that was occupied during the time of the late President Nelson Mandela. Elections 2014 – State of the Province The Western Cape has become a mere battlefield for the powers that govern this province and those at a national level. Whilst they sling mud at each other, they forget about you whilst you sink deeper into the quagmire of poverty, joblessness and poor service delivery. The socio-economic suffering in the Western Cape is a blight that particularly affects this province. Serious issues such as organised crime, gangsterism and substance abuse have become synonymous with poor communities. A vicious cycle starts because there is no work. People, especially the vulnerable youth, resort to crime and fall for the “attractions” of the gangsters’ lifestyle of fast cars and bling. Drugs and drinking become a standard pastime and this in turn leads to more vandalism, crime, family violence and heartache. On Monday, during testimony at the Khayelitsha Commission, we heard that the Western Cape has the lowest staff complement of police in the country. This is not acceptable. The issues of gangsterism, crime (rape and murder in particular) and drug abuse in this province are as old as the mountains, and yet the South African Police Services have not responded to the threat with the necessary urgency and action. Does in not make you angry that the Democratic Alliance and the ANC have, in their efforts to thwart each other, reduced crime fighting in the province to a political football? What makes the UDM differenct? Why must you vote UDM? • The UDM is rooted in the very foundation of anti-corruption. We are relentless in the pursuit of the original agenda, which is to improve the lives of all South Africans. • We are unwavering in our stance that institutionalised corruption is one of the main contributors to unemployment, poverty, inequality and poor service delivery. • The UDM has prudent and effective leadership who work in a consultative manner. This is evidenced by our open-door approach and our efforts to meet with communities across the length and breadth of South Africa. • A UDM government will go back-to-basics and pave the way for economic emancipation for everyone. Conclusion There is hope for South Africa and the UDM can lead real change in your lives. You need to think about an alternative and the UDM is that alternative. When you make your mark on the 7th of May, I want you to remember, you have the power to change, so that we can have a better future for ourselves and our children. I thank you
