Ramaphosa unshaken by DA, EFF challenge in upcoming poll

ANC deputy president, Cyril Ramaphosa, says he has no doubt that the ANC will remain the winning party in the Nelson Mandela Metro in the Eastern Cape, despite strong opposition from the Democratic Alliance (DA) and new comer, Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).

Ramaphosa was speaking at the reburial of the remains of MK cadres Sizakele Buzo and Fuzile Zigoxo in Port Elizabeth. The two were buried as unidentified paupers in Makhado, and their remains were exhumed by the TRC in 1998.

Ramaphosa says they did not die in vain. He also says the Eastern Cape must remain an ANC stronghold. Ramaphosa says the ANC is a winning organisation and they have no doubt that they are going to win in the Eastern Cape.

“We are also going to win countrywide as our campaign is geared towards winning the votes of our people, and our sense is that they love the ANC, support it and remain loyal to the ANC,” says a confident Ramaphosa.

Eastern Cape became the focal point of campaign this weekend as ANC big guns descended on the province. Other leaders spread across the province and Ramaphosa also spent the day interacting with locals, where he re-iterated that they are in the elections to win by overwhelming majority. He says they are not shaken by the newly formed parties.

We are also going to win countrywide as our campaign is geared towards winning the votes of our people, and our sense is that they love the ANC, support it and remain loyal to the ANC

Meanwhile in KwaZulu-Natal, Azapo took its “Take Back Your Power” campaign to Inchanga, west of Durban on Saturday. The party’s door-to-door campaign was led by its President Jake Dikobo. He interacted with residents in the area, and listened to their grievances.

He expressed concern about the state of the roads and also the lack of RDP houses. He says his party’s election campaign will focus on free education for all school pupils from grade one to 12 and also for free education for first-year tertiary students.

Dikobo had high praise for Public Protector Thuli Mandonsela and her report on Nkandla. He said voters must use the damning findings in the report when they cast their ballots. “The ANC must own up, the President must own up. We have heard people calling for the impeachment of the president, we think that the country must impeach the ANC. People must vote out the ANC rather than follow a person or by the way the president must pay back what’s accrued to his family that was not due to the family,” says Dikobo.

In the Free State the Congress of the People (COPE) deputy president Willie Madisha says they have overcome their internal problems and are now ready to govern South Africa after the May 7th elections. He was been speaking to the SABC during a door-to-door campaign in Sebokeng. COPE had experienced leadership battles that saw it lose membership and some of its key founding leaders. But Madisha says they will surprise many at the polls. Electioneering continues across the country.