BALDWIN NDABA
Retired Brigadier General Kwena Mangope – the son of late former Bophuthatswana leader Lucas Mangope – has been elected the North West chairperson of ActionSA.
Welcoming the appointment, ActionSA leader Herman Mashaba said he was pleased that he had been able to attract someone of the calibre of Kgosi Mangope, a man who shares his passion for human development, the restoration of South African’s glory and pride, someone who is particularly determined to help bring about the improvement of lives of all people, focusing specific attention to those living in rural areas.
The North West Province remains one of our most impoverished provinces, yet it sits atop one of the largest deposits of precious metal and mineral wealth in the world. The people of the province have been subjected to years of underdevelopment while government and political overlords apparently fight daily over who gets to loot its available resources.
Mashaba said former leaders of the North West have turned it into a forgotten backwater village province for their narrow enrichment.
“The appointment of Kgosi Mangope could not have come at a more opportune time, following ActionSA’s groundbreaking contribution in the removal from power of the ANC in the siix municipalities we contested in these last elections. Shortly after one year of ActionSA’s establishment, we are now in government, with eight members of the mayoral committees (MMCs) in the Gauteng metros, and oversight chairpersons to be elected in a few weeks’ time.
“I am on record saying that our 2024 project is going full steam ahead and that our intention is to appoint provincial chairpersons in the six remaining provinces by the end of March 2022. We are on track and, with this appointment now having been made, we remain with five still to be finalised,” he said.
Mashaba said the importance of finalising these appointments could not be overstated as voters across the country were desperately searching for ethical leadership, that could tackle our world-beating inequality, unemployment, and crime.
“The people of the North West are no different, but I am certain that they will now be able to look at ActionSA, under Kgosi Mangope, as the alternative that they have been waiting for. I am satisfied with his ability to help lead the restoration of that province back to its former glory.
“After years of neglect and looting, the North West has become a shadow of its former self, with much of its infrastructure having gone into a state of disrepair. Its public facilities are stuck in the 1900’s, and its community development facilities, such as its stadiums, are being stripped in broad daylight, just like much of our rail network across the country.
“As our 2024 project goes into a higher gear, we will be paying specific attention to provinces such as the North West, with a view to ensuring that its dormant industrial capacity is reinvigorated. We intend to ensure that abandoned industrial areas such as Babalegi, Ga-Rankuwa, Mogwase, Qwa-Qwa, Ekandustria, and many other areas closed down by Cosatu over the last 27 years, are brought back to productive life so we can defeat this runaway unemployment and ensure that the people of these provinces have the dignity of gainful employment,” Mashaba said.
Political Bureau