By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
Former Gauteng premier Tokyo Sexwale in Katlehong on 7 May 2024. Picture: X / @GautengANC.
After years of absence from the political space, the former Gauteng Premier, Sexwale, joined the ANC’s election campaign in Ekurhuleni, east of Johannesburg, on Tuesday.
Sexwale’s aim is to revive the people’s spirits and mobilise voters ahead of the elections.
The 2024 national and provincial elections are scheduled to be held on May 29, which is just three weeks from now.
During a doorstep interview, Sexwale told the media that the ANC was facing difficulties as the elections were looming and it needed massive support to remain in power and continue serving the people of South Africa.
Sexwale said there was still hope within the ANC to lead the people hence they are on the ground to help it win the elections.
“The wheels have not all fallen off, the screws are loose, but this wagon, this vehicle of the ANC, is still on, that’s why we are here. Our people still have a belief in what the ANC can achieve with them and for them. We still have our wheels, we are just here to tighten them up,” he said.
He promised the people that the ANC will ensure that they deal with their mistakes and lead the people.
He took a swipe at splinter parties that have found expression outside the party.
“As we renew the ANC, we don’t forget that the people who did wrong inside the ANC have found their way into society. So they cause problems inside society.
“We are here to say to South Africans, fellow members of the ANC and members of the alliance at large: we are bending our knees, in front of our people. We promise them a better life, not because we said so in 1994 but because the ANC is renewing itself and we want to reconstruct the country.”
Sexwale said it was important to acknowledge that not all is lost for the ANC.
He also commented on the election campaign advert of the Democratic Alliance (DA) showing the burning of a South African flag.
“Once you attack the flag of the country, once you burn it whether physically or on social media then you are no longer a patriot. You are now insulting the people.”
He said the flag represented the blood shed during the fight against apartheid.
“That’s the red part of the flag. Anybody who denigrates that flag, anybody who disrespects that flag is disrespecting our people.
President Cyril Ramaphosa said, “It is despicable that a political party can, as it seeks to express itself, go and burn a symbol of our unity, the symbol of our existence as a nation.”
“I think it is treasonous because anybody, and particularly an organisation that does something like that for political expediency, they should really be ashamed of themselves because it is the most despicable political act that anyone can embark upon, particularly when campaigning for votes.
Ramaphosa spoke on the sidelines of the official opening of a new, purpose-built Department of Home Affairs office in Mokopane.
The DA has defended the advert, with party leader John Steenhuisen saying they wanted to convey an urgent warning on the perils faced by the country.
“What you will see in this advertisement is a symbolic representation of the future that awaits South Africa if people do not vote for the DA,” Steenhuisen said.”
Minister of Arts and Culture Zizi Kodwa said the department is considering its options.
“The minister has instructed the acting director-general, advisors and the legal unit of the Department of Sport, Arts and Culture to urgently advise him on the recourse the government can take when national symbols are denigrated and desecrated.