By Lehlohonolo Lehana
African National Congress (ANC) President Cyril Ramaphosa has assured Jozini residents that the water roll-out project will see them accessing clean water.
Ramaphosa was in Bambanana in the Jozini Municipality, northern KwaZulu-Natal as part of a five-day early election campaign.
Residents have been struggling for clean water for decades, despite close proximity to the Jozini Dam.
He launched a tap in Jozini local municipality, while attending the official opening of the Bhekindoda Water Scheme. In a video making the rounds on social media, the president was surrounded by some officials and supporters.
Ramaphosa was criticised for launching a tap and ideally highlighting the negligence of the ANC for its people.
During the presidential aspect of his visit, he opened the R300 million Nelson Mandela Cruise Terminal at the Port of Durban on Wednesday and did a helicopter trip around Richards Bay on Thursday to see first-hand the problems at Transnet and its impact – which has resulted in a backlog of trucks on the N2.
On Friday, Ramaphosa attended the official opening of the Dr Pixley Ka Seme Memorial Hospital in KwaMashu.
He also spoke at the national conference of the SA National Civic Organisation (Sanco) telling delegates that he is satisfied the government now knows it has the capacity to deal with the crippling stage 6 load shedding, and the unfolding Transnet crisis.
Ramaphosa said the party’s victory in the Msunduzi by-elections, where the ANC won by 2,428 votes, followed by EFF with 327, and IFP with 219 votes was proof the ruling party would do well at next year’s national elections.
“I’m glad you said the victory we achieved in Msunduzi is largely because of Sanco. I am happy. In the upcoming elections, I want to see Sanco working with the ANC as we win more by-elections leading up to national elections,” he said.
“Our unity is going to be more consolidated as we go for our victory again in 2024. People think the ANC is not going to perform well. They are dreaming, they are going to see how well the ANC will perform.”
On Saturday, Ramaphosa participated in an ANC-organised #RaisingABoyChild Peace Walk on the Durban promenade and later went to uMzimkhulu, where he took part in a walkabout.
Later in the evening, Ramaphosa spoke at a stakeholder engagement session in Durban, saying the damage that had been done at the country’s port and rail operations as a result of inefficiency at Transnet was huge.
“Now we are attending to it. Yes, Durban is the main artery of our economy and we need to ensure it works perfectly.
“We are now getting into a mode where we are repairing the economy but of course load shedding has had a devastating impact which we will see in next year’s economic performance.”
Meanwhile a report by the ANC’s electoral committee, chaired by former president Kgalema Motlanthe, has painted a bleak picture of the party’s performance at next year’s polls.
The report was discussed at a special national executive committee (NEC) meeting on Wednesday, sparking disagreements between senior ANC leaders.
The report highlighted a high number of inactive ANC branches, with more than 30% of them having failed to nominate candidates for next year’s elections.
It detailed how hundreds of branches were unable to meet because of the disenchantment that has spread across the lower structures of the ANC.
According to the electoral committee, only 2 533 branches submitted lists. The party had 3 942 branches before last year’s national conference.
The ANC relies on its branches to entice potential voters and encourage community members to register to vote.
Recent opinion polls have projected that the ANC’s support could dip below 50% for the first time in the 2024 national elections.
A poll released in October by the Brenthurst Foundation, in conjunction with the London-based SABI Strategy Group, shows that ANC support continues to decline.
However, it also said opposition parties are unlikely to garner enough support to dethrone the ANC if it gets less than 50%.
The ANC’s support dropped from 48% in November 2022 to 41% in October 2023. Those surveyed said unemployment, corruption and load shedding were their biggest concerns.
A Social Research Foundation (SRF) report in November also said that former president Thabo Mbeki had a higher ‘favourability perceptions score’ than current president Ramaphosa.