Cape Town - President Jacob Zuma needs to announce a bold turnaround plan to help the country's unemployed, the DA said on Tuesday.
The number of unemployed South Africans had remained stuck at seven million over the past year, according to the Stats SA Quarterly Labour Force Survey (QLFS) released on Tuesday, Democratic Alliance MP Tim Harris said.
Harris's statement came two days before Zuma delivers his state-of-the-nation address (Sona).
“The truth is that President Zuma's original promise of five million jobs by 2014 has remained nothing but an unfulfilled pipe dream,” Harris said.
“Instead, 1.4 million people have joined the ranks of the unemployed since he assumed office.”
Harris said for this reason, the DA's leadership would march to Luthuli House in central Johannesburg on Wednesday.
The Freedom Front Plus said it expected Zuma to compare the country to what it was before 1994 in a bid to win votes ahead of the May 7 elections.
“President Jacob Zuma will in all likelihood sketch a totally different picture of South Africa in his Sona on Thursday, than the one voters experience every day and what the FF Plus will be sketching this year,” said FF Plus leader Pieter Mulder.
The country expected Zuma to respond to several crises, including the high number of strikes.
“At the present time, there are six strikes a day in Gauteng alone. As Gauteng is the economic engine of South Africa this situation cannot continue,” Mulder said.
Mulder wanted the role of trade unions and labour laws reviewed.
Increasingly violent service delivery protests were also cause for concern.
“We would like to hear an announcement about better police training and plans for better service delivery at a local level. It should include plans on how the lack of expertise of local councils will be improved.”
Sapa