By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The Democratic Alliance took to the streets of Cape Town on Wednesday, marching to Parliament against the government’s Employment Equity Amendment Bill.
The protest was to build on the success achieved by Trade Union Solidarity in the form of a settlement reached with the South African government via the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
This comes after Quarterly Employment Statistics (QES) released by Statistics South Africa reveals 97 000 jobs were lost between March 2022 and March 2023.
The act gives Minister of Employment and Labour Thulas Nxesi the power to set quotas for companies and businesses to speed up workplace transformation.
The act was signed into law by President Cyril Ramaphosa in April.
The DA demanded a complete scrapping of the Act’s provisions that give the employment and labour minister the power to set racial quotas.
Addressing those who marched in Cape Town, DA leader John Steenhuisen said this “Race Quotas Act” could cost up to 600,000 jobs and has accused the ANC of promoting racial division through “race quotas”.
“They have already switched off your lights, they are coming for your water, they are coming for your child’s education, and they are coming for every aspect of your life, including your private business that they now want to get in and control and make sure that they can put their own cadres into your business so that you would help them get rich instead of empowering more people.”
Steenhuisen said they believe the act will only enrich those affiliated with the ANC.
“There is one group that will benefit from this act, but it’s not the poor, not the skilled workers who are locked out of opportunities, it’s not our young who spend a fortune to study, but there is no work for them. These laws are designed to benefit the connected cadres in the ANC.
“The most powerful weapon anyone has in a democracy is your vote, it’s more power than a bullet, it’s more powerful than a brick, and it’s more powerful than the ANC.”
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Video Courtesy of DA.