DA faces coalition challenge: PA joins five parties in Western Cape

DA faces coalition challenge: PA joins five parties in Western Cape

With just six weeks remaining until South Africans head to the polls on 29 May, the race for votes in the Western Cape is intensifying.

Political battle royale: McKenzie’s PA amps up campaign in Western Cape

Competition for votes intensifies in the Western Cape as the Patriotic Alliance teams up with five smaller parties holding seats in several councils, aiming to diminish the DA’s dominance.

For over ten years, the DA has been the leading political force in the province.

Yet, current surveys suggest its control could be challenged in the upcoming elections.

According to the Daily Maverick, Gayton McKenzie, the President of the Patriotic Alliance (PA) and the premier candidate for the Western Cape, revealed the leaders of five parties who have chosen not to run in the general elections.

Still, they will support the PA during their campaign.

Mostly emerging from rural regions of the province, these are local parties that emerged during the 2021 local elections.

Due to financial constraints, the parties have opted to campaign alongside the PA and advocate for Gayton McKenzie’s candidacy for premier.

The five parties are:

• Advieskantoor, led by Leon Campher;
• The Karoo Gemeenskap Party (KGP), led by Goliath Lottering;
• The Karoo Democratic Force (KDF), led by Noël Constable;
• The Oudtshoorn Gemeenskap Initiatief, led by Colin Sylvester; and
• Witzenberg Aksie, led by Gert Laban.

“Western Cape is about to change,” McKenzie said.

“We are taking back the province. The PA began establishing this relationship with these leaders and parties last year already, and this alliance has only gone from strength to strength.

“These leaders have realised the value of standing with the PA and not splitting their constituencies’ vote, as we all want what is best for South Africa and the Western Cape, and the PA represents the strongest opportunity, as the fastest-growing party in the country, to make the voices of South Africa’s long-disenfranchised voters count most.”

McKenzie criticised the Multi-Party Charter, which includes 11 parties such as the DA, IFP, ActionSA, ACDP, and Freedom Front Plus, stating that he wasn’t just uniting registered parties but parties with a proven history of winning council seats.

McKenzie plans to focus his campaign efforts in Cape Town, recognizing that winning the province hinges on the support of the two million registered voters residing in the Cape Town metro, out of the Western Cape’s total of three million.

He pledges to tackle issues such as gangsterism, land redistribution, and undocumented immigration if elected as the Western Cape premier.

Despite aiming to unseat the DA in the province, McKenzie remains open to collaboration with the party.

Cape Town’s reputation as a well-run municipality challenged by Gayton McKenzie

Gayton McKenzie has promised to uncover the truth behind the DA claims of superior governance in the Western Cape.

According to McKenzie, the DA has deceived the public by boasting about improved services while allegedly neglecting poorer communities in favour of wealthier urban areas.

“People don’t have water and no electricity, this is not right. There is water and sewage running in the streets of Stellenbosch. But there is everything by the white areas.”

According to TimesLive, During his campaign, DA leader John Steenhuisen highlighted the Western Cape’s decade-long period of effective governance.

He emphasised that the DA provides good, clean, and accountable governance that benefits all South Africans, especially those who are economically disadvantaged.

McKenzie refutes the assertion that Cape Town is the most efficiently managed municipality, stating that it lacks credibility.

“I want to show you how the people live in Philippi and Samora Machel. There are toilets on the side of the road that the whole community is expected to share. There are heaps of dirt piled up next to the toilets, they don’t collect rubbish. These are people, they are not dogs, and they are expected to live like this.”

He stated that the DA prioritizes residents in affluent neighbourhoods, neglecting the welfare of those in impoverished conditions.

“The DA is playing. We are going to remove you from power,” he warned.

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