Don’t just shout; vote: Duarte

CAPE TOWN, 2014/01/18, The ANC celebrated its 102 birthday with a cape decorated in the colours of the ANC. Thousands of ANC supporters attended the launch of the ANC Western Cape election manifesto at Delft South sports complex in Cape Town. Picture: Adrian de Kock

CAPE TOWN, 2014/01/18, The ANC celebrated its 102 birthday with a cape decorated in the colours of the ANC. Thousands of ANC supporters attended the launch of the ANC Western Cape election manifesto at Delft South sports complex in Cape Town. Picture: Adrian de Kock

Published Jan 20, 2014

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Cape Town - The ANC in the Western Cape has called on its supporters not to rest on their laurels as it takes on the DA at the election polls in the next few months.

The party held the provincial launch of its election manifesto in front of thousands of spectators at the Delft South sports grounds on Saturday.

ANC deputy secretary-general Jessie Duarte said party supporters could not “stand still and shout” at DA leader Helen Zille.

“What is the point? She does not hear you,” she said.

“The time has come to ask people to vote for the ANC. Don’t wait at home for people to come to you, as a cadre of the ANC, to say vote for the ANC.”

Duarte said the party’s work was not complete and it had spent the past 20 years dealing with “apartheid’s mess” and now had to build a “fearless nation”.

“It is time comrades, to not only shout slogans, to not only wear T-shirts, but to have the courage to take the Western Cape out of minority rule.”

Duarte said the top priority was job creation.

Posters for the rally had a picture of Zuma and created the impression among some supporters that he would be there.

“I know you are disappointed. He (Zuma) was needed somewhere else. When we bring him here, let us see you in bigger stadiums,” she said.

ANC provincial chairman Marius Fransman said mass rallies would not win votes for the party to unseat the DA and supporters needed to visit voters at their homes.

He called on branch members to steer clear of division in the party because that would affect their support.

Several religious leaders, including the Muslim Judicial Council and the Progressive Professionals Forum, endorsed the party’s election campaign.

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Cape Times

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