PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa called on political parties in South Africa to strengthen the trust between citizens and elected representatives through competence, integrity, performance and delivery.
Speaking at the announcement of the 2021 Local Government Elections in Pretoria on Thursday night, Ramaphosa said this will better the lives of the South African people in general.
“Public representatives need to be more visible and more active in our communities. Above all, they need to listen to the communities they serve,” said Ramaphosa.
“”Local government must be a force for good, development and progress. We as leaders must put aside our differences and work together in a spirit of partnership, collaboration, common purpose in the interest of the people of SA.”
He added that the people of SA want their lives improved.
“They want better services. They want to live in a better SA, with equal opportunity.”
Ramaphosa said while on the campaign trail, South Africans told politicians about their frustrations with load shedding, unemployment and poor services.
He said it was now time to get down to work for elected officials.“We can definitely say the people have spoken and we thank South Africans for speaking out in this election.” Ramaphosa congratulates SA for holding a peaceful, free and fair election. Ramaphosa also thanked the 12 million voters who cast their ballots. “This is a sign that multi-party politics is flourishing in SA. This enriches our democracy. It also advances openness and transparency,” said Ramaphosa.
“These local government elections were conducted and contested by a record 325 political parties and nearly 95,000 candidates, of whom over 1,500 were independent candidates.”
- Inside Politics
