Independent Political Analyst, Precious Lugayeni, says the Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) is unlikely to deviate from its promises in 2016 when the party launches its election manifesto this evening at the Greyville Racecourse in Durban.
The launch comes ahead of the 1 November local government elections. The IFP’s ten-point plan will be unveiled this evening.
Lugayeni says given the party’s experience, it is likely to focus more on local governance rather than a national agenda.
“I have read and listened to the three manifestos that have been delivered in the past few days. The IFP will not bring anything new. Even if you look at their 2016 manifesto, there are jobs, women, clean governance, and all those kinds of things. I think they will still bring those because those have not been achieved. The issue of corruption as well. Those have been the major weaknesses that have been put forward with the ANC. However, what I think the IFP will not do, they will not include things that are not in the jurisdiction of the local government, because the IFP has the experience of both provincial, national government governance.”
The party says it is ready to launch its manifesto:
Lugayeni says the party has enjoyed success in recent by-elections. She says this is partly due to the credibility of its leader, Velenkosi Hlabisa.
“The IFP of course has been defined around Nkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi. But remember also that Nkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi also affirmed Velenkosi Hlabisa. We didn’t see any fallout within the IFP when Velenkosi Hlabisa took office. Also, the IFP has had Nkosi Mangosuthu Buthelezi as their Emeritus leader of the party, in other words, Mangosuthu Buthelezi is still there and Velenkosi Hlabisa has not caused any big stir in the IFP. So, I don’t foresee any decline in their performance based on the leadership.”
