By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The leader of the official opposition party, John Steenhuisen urged voters on Sunday to vote for his party because it does not offer empty promises, days away from an election which could see the ruling African National Congress (ANC) lose its majority.
The Democratic Alliance (DA), which won the second-largest share of the vote in the last election, urged supporters to use their pens to close the ANC chapter, which he said was riddled with “unemployment, corruption and misrule”, and write a new one when they cast their vote on May 29.
The rally took place at the Willowmoore Cricket Stadium in Benoni, in the east of Johannesburg where Steenhuisen gave his final marching orders to supporters and activists.
The official opposition has already held a series of rallies across the country and the final tour is a culmination of the party’s efforts to win control of the country through a coalition with its fellow opposition parties.
“We don’t offer empty promises, we show concrete facts and the facts are undeniable,” Steenhuisen told the crowd, shielded from the winter sun by blue umbrellas.
“Today our people are suffering under the unbearable burden of poverty, unemployment, crime. These disasters are not inevitable but were created by the ANC,” he said.
“On Wednesday, the ANC will lose the outright majority is has abused for decades … On Wednesday, we close the ANC chapter of our history.”
Steenhuisen said in this election and for the first time ever, the DA has a clear pathway into national government.
“By uniting with our partners inside the Multi-Party Charter, we have pooled together the biggest bloc of opposition votes since 1994. Together, we can get to the 50%-plus-one we need to rescue South Africa. With the ANC on its way out, if every DA voter comes out on Election Day, we can win!
“I am here today to tell you one thing, help is on the way,” Steenhuisen said.
He said voters cannot sit back and allow the DA to lose.
“If we sit back and allow a coalition between the ANC, the EFF and the MK Party – aided by sell outs like the Patriotic Alliance – our tomorrow will be far, far worse than our yesterday.”
Polls suggest the ANC could win fewer than 201 seats in the 400-member National Assembly for the first time and be unable to elect a president without support from other parties.
Steenhuisen is hoping to capitalise on the discontent with a promise to “Rescue South Africa” through liberal economic reform and privatisations.
The opposition is represented by 51 parties large and small on the ballot, and the DA leader would also face a post-election battle to assemble a coalition of MPs to put him in power.
The ANC won freedom for black South Africans after decades of apartheid, helped build democracy and lifted millions out of poverty by creating a social welfare system.
But many in the country of 62 million are fed up with high and growing unemployment, currently at 32.9 percent, as well as rampant crime, power cuts and water shortages.
The economy grew a meagre 0.6 percent in 2023.
About 27 million people are registered to vote on May 29. They will elect the 400 members of the National Assembly, which then chooses the president.