Johannesburg - President Cyril Ramaphosa has urged ANC strongholds to stop their reluctance to come out to vote during elections, as this harmed the party’s performance.
Ramaphosa was on Thursday leading the party’s campaign trail in Tembisa, flanked by Gauteng ANC chairperson and Premier David Makhura and Ekurhuleni chairperson Mzwandile Masina.
Tembisa is one of the country’s biggest townships and an ANC stronghold in terms of electoral support.
Ramaphosa said ANC supporters were dragging their fit when it came to going out to vote, as they were complacent about the party big size and considerable support.
“People from other parties wake up early on voting day and they go vote. ANC people wait until it is late and they say they do not need to vote because the ANC is going to win anyway,” Ramaphosa said.
Ramaphosa has been frequenting the province as part of the ANC’s battle to retain its control, with the DA also eyeing to dislodge it through a coalition should the ANC secure less that 50% of votes.
The governing party has openly expressed concerns about the possibility of losing control of the province due to its declining voter support in the province over the years.
Several polls have hinted at the possibility of the party being dislodged from power as soon as the May 8 election.
On Thursday, Ramaphosa appealed to Tembisa residents not decrease the overwhelming support they have been giving the party during elections.
“Usually here in Tembisa, we get a huge majority. Almost 75% of people here vote for the ANC when they go out to vote. If you do not go early and vote of that day, the contribution of Tembisa is going to be minimal and the ANC vote will be affected,” Ramaphosa said.
His campaign trail included visits to community stations and door-to-door where residents asked him about job, the housing crisis and the current power outages by Eskom.
“One of the reasons is that Eskom is indebted. It owes a lot of money because there are people who stole money there. That is one of the reasons we are where we are now.
“Another problem is that many of our power stations are old and do not function well. We are working on overhauling them,” Ramaphosa.
He said the Ekurhuleni Municipality was planning to build 25 000 houses as part of the on-going mega projects by the Gauteng provincial government.