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Published on 2024-02-17 14:17:22
Thousands of South Africans gathered in the capital city of Pretoria to show their support for the Democratic Alliance, the country’s biggest opposition party. The event was in preparation for the upcoming national election, where the party hopes to win control of the government from the ruling African National Congress (ANC).
The supporters of the Democratic Alliance gathered at the Union Buildings, the official seat of the South African government, to express their faith in the party’s ability to deliver better basic services and address the country’s challenges. These challenges include a worsening electricity crisis that has led to daily power blackouts, as well as an unemployment rate of over 32%. The Democratic Alliance has promised to create at least 2 million new jobs if it wins in the upcoming general election.
The date for the National Assembly and provincial elections has not been set, but it is expected to be sometime between May and August. The Democratic Alliance supporters marched through the streets of Pretoria before listening to a passionate speech by party leader John Steenhuisen. He vowed to unseat the African National Congress and accused President Cyril Ramaphosa of enabling corruption within the ANC.
The upcoming elections are expected to be one of the toughest yet for the ruling party, with recent polls suggesting that the ANC may receive less than 50% of the national vote for the first time since the end of apartheid in 1994. In the 2019 elections, the Democratic Alliance received just over 20% of the national vote, making it the second-biggest party in the country after the ANC. The party is now exploring the possibility of forming a governing coalition with other opposition parties to remove the ANC from power.
Steenhuisen emphasized the importance of consolidating like-minded parties into a cohesive bloc, stating that it offers voters the best prospect for political change since 1994. Under South Africa’s system of government, lawmakers elect the president, so a party or coalition with a majority in parliament controls both the executive and legislative branches. If the ANC’s support falls below 50% at the polls, the party would have to make deals with smaller parties to secure Ramaphosa’s reelection.
Steenhuisen described the Democratic Alliance’s manifesto as South Africa’s “rescue plan” and highlighted the party’s successful delivery of services in the Western Cape province, the only provincial government not led by the ANC. The party’s manifesto also includes plans to end the electricity crisis by privatizing power generation and moving towards the use of more renewable sources. Additionally, the party has pledged to devote more resources to fighting gender-based violence and other crimes.
One supporter, 20-year-old Deacon Nortman, expressed confidence in the Democratic Alliance, stating, “We know that many parties are going to make promises when they campaign, but it is only the DA which can actually prove that they can deliver because they have a good track record in the Western Cape and Cape Town.”
The African National Congress is set to unveil its party platform in KwaZulu-Natal province next week as the country gears up for what is expected to be a highly contested and pivotal national election.
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