IFP leader Velenkosini Hlabisa, who launched the party’s election manifesto to the people of Gauteng on Sunday, says the time to unseat the ANC has come.
Hlabisa addressed members of the party during a rally held at the Germiston Stadium where he urged them to come out in their numbers and vote for the “tried and tested IFP” which is ready to govern.
He said this year’s elections are a time for South Africans to protest against an uncaring ANC government.
“29 May is a day of protest – we will be protesting at the ballot box. There will be no miracles; it only needs you to stand up and say enough is enough, and say it is now or never. If we fail to remove the government that has failed us, it is hard to contemplate the next five years,” he said.
He said during his recent visits to communities in Ekurhuleni and elsewhere across the country, he has been able to understand the plight of poor South Africans who continue to live under undesirable conditions more than 30 years since the dawn of democracy.
Hlabisa said the only way the residents of Gauteng can rescue themselves from the ruins, is to vote wisely in the upcoming elections.
“As you are gathered here, you are part of these 6.5 million voters and the responsibility to make the right choices is on you.Since Tuesday until yesterday, with the leaders of Gauteng I physically visited various communities in Ekurhuleni (Kwa-Thema, Katlehong, Vosloorus, Thokoza), Kagiso, Rand West, Merafong, Vaal, George Goch, TUT Ga-Rankuwa Campus, Helen Joseph Women’s Hostel and Soweto, to witness the real life challenges our people experience daily. The situation is bad. The infrastructure is broken down, poverty is evident in many places of this province,” he said.
Hlabisa had some choice words for the elites who he said, do not care about ordinary South Africans, which is why the country’s economy has been crippled and infrastructure damaged.
“No wonder our country is suffering! The IFP’s founder, the late Prince Mangosuthu Buthelezi, always told us that the fish rots from the head. That is true. The rot within the ruling elite runs deep, and it is poisoning the whole of South Africa.
“There is no doubt whatsoever that change is needed. But it matters tremendously what kind of change we bring in 2024. The IFP stands ready to rebuild South Africa. We stand for the 2024 elections as a government-in-waiting, knowing that the IFP’s leadership and the IFP’s influence is desperately needed in the administration of our provinces and the administration of our country,” he said.
The Star