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The DA notes ANC Spokesperson Pule Mabe’s decision to take leave following a sexual harassment complaint lodged against him by a party staffer. This is, however, not enough given the seriousness of the accusations.

We, therefore, call on the failing ANC to place Mabe on suspension until investigations into the matter are concluded. The allegation shows that the sex-for-jobs scourge is endemic in ANC structures and it extends all the way to the upper echelons of Luthuli House.

Mabe is not the first senior ANC official accused of sexual misconduct. Former Western Cape ANC Chairperson Marius Fransman allegedly touched his assistant inappropriately in January 2016. We welcome the National Prosecuting Authority’s decision to prosecute Fransman.

Nearly 10 million people are unemployed in South Africa and, instead of remedying this, the ANC is adding to the problem by failing to act against officials who demand sexual favours from our people in exchange for jobs.

A DA national government will create fair access to jobs and ensure that the predatory sex-for-jobs practice is done away with. For too long, unemployment has oppressed South Africans and the ANC has failed to intervene. In 2019, citizens can change this by removing the failing ANC from power.

Issued by The DA