Cape Town – Political parties in the Western Cape are satisfied with the work done in the build-up to the local government elections, despite the challenges presented to them.
Not only has Covid-19 presented itself as a threat to the November 1 elections, but parties had less than 10 weeks to gear up for the battlefield in comparison to the lengthy period which they usually have to campaign.
In an interview with Independent Media, the ANC in the province’s spokesperson Sifiso Mtsweni says the party’s campaign has been focused and coherent.
“Indeed, the ANC has worked hard and continues to do so until the last minute. Our campaign has been positive, we have been received far more positively than ever before and our election campaign has been focused and coherent. Ours is to reclaim lost ground and we will continue to push on.
“The time can never be sufficient, Covid-19 affected us badly, but we believe we continue to do our best to reach all our voters and we are confident to do well,” Mtsweni said.
Freedom Front Plus provincial leader Corne Mulder described the campaign as “short and hectic”.
“There is never enough time to campaign, but in reality to that situation we are satisfied that we have had a very successful campaign. We have gone all out in the metro and areas outside, and we are convinced that the party will do very well,” Mulder said.
IFP MP Narend Singh said despite the compressed time it had to campaign, the provincial party was able to reach a significant number of voters. "There is a lot of enthusiasm and interest in our party. We think we will do much better, compared to 2019. We wished we had more time, but there will never be enough time," Singh said.
Good Party’s Cape Town mayoral candidate Brett Herron said the party, led by Patricia de Lille, had received a warm response on the ground.
“Voters are tired of the old parties and the unfulfilled empty promises.
“There is an absence of care and a state of neglect that is the unavoidable track record of the old governing parties.
“We’ve worked hard to convince voters to give GOOD, a new party with substantial local government experience, the opportunity to govern and we’ve asked them to evaluate the difference in five years. If we disappoint them, they must vote us out.
“Of course we would have liked more time to reach more people,” Herron said.
He said the party now intends to push hard to reach more voters. “We see the finish line, but of course more time, and campaigning without the restrictions of the pandemic, would have been preferable,” Herron said.
Political Bureau