By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
African National Congress (ANC) president, Cyril Ramaphosa addressed party members and volunteers at the Nangoza Jebe Hall, New Brighton, telling supporters that the ANC-led government had brought incredible changes to the country.
Ramaphosa highlighted the many rights enshrined in the Constitution that many South Africans did not enjoy under the apartheid government.
He said these included the workers’ rights, including the right to strike, which he said “this government brought about.”
The party secretary-general, Fikile Mbalula, was also wrapping up his ANC Amathole region campaign at the Orient Theatre in East London, after addressing the community of Qonce at Ward 41.
The ANC president also spoke about creating a more equal society, not only between races but between men and women.
Ramaphosa said the ANC-led government ensured that women in the country enjoyed equal rights as men, and paid tribute to the ANC Women’s League for “leading us in that direction.”
He also highlighted other ANC-led initiatives like the National Health Insurance, and access to electricity, saying today 95% of South Africans have access.
However, Ramaphosa also told supporters and volunteers that “we are going to resolve load shedding.”
He said the government was addressing load shedding and would solve it in a “short space of time.”
Ramaphosa again insisted that “clear and measurable progress” was being made to end the power disruptions.
“As loadshedding is steadily and surely brought to an end, we will emerge from this electricity crisis into a completely transformed energy landscape,” he promised.
Ramaphosa also commended the Eastern Cape premier Oscar Mabuyane on developments in the province.
“He spends quite a bit of time going around to various parts of the world to attract investors to come here – to give them confidence and to ensure that there is proper infrastructure on the ground. The roads are being done, dams are being built. We have spoken for years about the Umzimvubu Dam, here in the Eastern Cape. It is now being built after many years of speaking about this very important dam.”
Meanwhile Standard Bank said on Friday that the ANC will get enough votes in the upcoming 2024 elections and will not need to form a coalition government.
Standard Bank forecast that the Democratic Alliance (DA) would get around 22.5% of the vote, while the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) would get around 11%.
The bank gave a warning to investors on Friday and said that they should brace for a tumultuous period as the country heads to the polls.
In the best scenario, the bank noted that there may be a considerable amount of investment in certain sectors.
“If our base-case outlook of the ANC garnering sufficient votes plays out, implying policy continuity, we expect foreign investors to add risk to portfolios and start investing in interest rate sensitive equity sectors such as general retailers and industrials,” the bank said.
Standard Bank said that it expects renewed investor interest in the industrials and general retailers sectors in the second half of 2024, based on prospects for monetary easing and improved job creation as SA’s energy constraints ease.