Gauteng Sopa: All eyes on Lesufi!

GAUTENG Premier Panyaza Lesufi is set to deliver his State of the Province Address (Sopa), but unfortunately, the outlook isn't promising given the current state of the province.

From persistent water and power cuts to mismanagement of funds in municipalities, as well as the deteriorating infrastructure of schools and hospitals, there's little positive news to report.

Political parties have expressed their lack of enthusiasm about what the premier will have to say.

Many are calling for him to do less talking and more acting. The Democratic Alliance (DA) has expressed expectations that Lesufi will fail to deliver meaningful solutions to the province's challenges.

DA provincial chairman Solly Msimanga said: "Lesufi has consistently used every Sopa as a platform to satisfy his relentless desire to lie and deceive the people of Gauteng, making grand promises of prosperity, only to deliver disappointment."

He said that Lesufi's arrogance and denialism are staggering, as it is evident that under his leadership, both before and after the establishment of the Government of Provincial Unit (GPU), Gauteng is heading straight in one disastrous direction a downward spiral.

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Msimanga further said that if Lesufi truly cared about the people of Gauteng, he would start by apologising for deceiving them and squandering their funds on initiatives that have not improved their lives but worsened their situation.

He also pointed out that under Lesufi's leadership, the economy of Gauteng has remained stagnant, and there has been a significant drop in investor confidence. "The unemployment rate has increased to 34,4% in the fourth quarter from 34,0% in the previous quarter," he said.

Matthew Cook, chairman of the GOOD Party in Gauteng, expressed that what the residents need from the premier is an honest assessment of the decay in the province and practical steps to turn the province around, not political rhetoric or posturing.

Cook said that instead of telling the public that the province's crime rate "keeps him awake at night" as he did during the province's first 100 days in office, Lesufi must tell them what his government intends to do about it.

He also stressed that the first step would be to rescind the decision to reinstate the officials allegedly involved in over R600 million worth of corruption at the Gauteng Department of Social Development. Cook further said: "MEC Faith Mazibuko, who publicly apologised to NPOs for the funding bungle in July of 2024, should be suspended pending a full investigation."

Cook added by calling for a detailed account from the premier regarding how the province intends to address the funding crisis in the Department of Health, where the national Treasury has refused to fund the R291 million needed for 1 180 critical posts due to the cost of employment overruns and wasteful expenditure by the government.