Cape Town - President Cyril Ramaphosa will today lead the sixth Presidential Imbizo at Cape Winelands District’s Dal Josaphat Stadium in Paarl.
A statement from the presidency said: “As part of the imbizo, communities will have an opportunity to speak to the president on key service delivery issues so that he can unblock any blockages.”
Ramaphosa’s plans have irked the DA in the province.
DA chief whip Wendy Kaizer-Philander said: “It is a transparently obvious attempt by the ANC to use state resources to electioneer in the province.”
Kaizer-Philander said the ANC in the Western Cape had yet to hold its own provincial conference and were almost an entire year behind schedule, yet despite this lack of a simple accomplishment they hoped to regain control of the province.
“Ramaphosa is undoubtedly aware of all of this, and hopes to use his appearances in the Western Cape to boost his party’s prospects. All of us as the taxpayers fund his travel, protection and expenses.”
However, ANC MPL for Drakenstein Gladys Baku-Baku Vos said Kaizer-Philander was making “childish claims” about the Presidential Imbizo.
She said far from being a party political event it was one of a series of imbizos the president was hosting across the country in various districts.
“We support co-operative governance across all three spheres of government. This can only benefit the people of the Boland in particular and the province. The blame and complain politics of the DA must be rejected.”
She said the DA’s stance was affecting communities negatively instead of encouraging national investment.
Meanwhile, DA provincial leader Tertuis Simmers has called on President Ramaphosa to use the imbizo to withdraw the Employment Equity Amendment Act (EEA).
Simmers said the act contains regulations that ban the employment of Coloureds and Indians in certain economic sectors and provinces.
Simmers said: “If he fails to do so, the EEA will undoubtedly lead to more unemployment and more poverty.
“It will inflame racial tensions, lead to a flight of skills, and trigger further divestment in an economy where seven out of 10 young people already cannot find work.”
mwangi.githahu@inl.co.za