People of Mzinti,

I’d like to start by wishing all of you a happy Africa Day. My dream for Africa is a prosperous continent where everyone has access to the basic services that makes it possible to live a dignified life.

This is what the DA is working hard to achieve across South Africa, and that includes your community here in Mzinti.

This is my first ever visit to this part of Mpumalanga. But I can assure you, it won’t be my last.

You will see me and my DA colleagues again and again until you one day have a DA local government here in Nkomazi municipality.

In the past people used to say: The DA is only in the Western Cape. Or the DA is only in the cities like Johannesburg and Tshwane.

But people don’t say that anymore, because the DA is growing in every single part of the country. We are spreading the blue wave from the mountains of the Cape right up to these furthest corners of Mpumalanga.

We are spreading throughout South Africa because we urgently need to bring the DA’s clean and caring government to more communities before they lose all hope.

And we are here in Mzinti today because we’d like to share with you our vision for a South Africa under a DA government. I want you to have an idea what this community could be like if things worked the way they’re meant to.

While the ANC is busy defending Premier DD Mabuza in court, the DA is here to talk about the future of Mzinti and the future of our country.

But we are not only here to tell you what the DA can do for you. We also want to hear from you what you need from your government.

Before coming here, I already knew what some of these things were from what I’ve heard in the news. You see, the only time a municipality like Nkomazi makes the news is when your government has let you down.

This is why I know that the people of Nkomazi struggle every day without the basic services that our Constitution guarantees each and every South African.

I know that communities in this area sometimes go for days, even weeks without water.

I know that many of you don’t have access to proper toilets.

I know how hard it is for young people in places like Mzinti to find work, and I know what that does to you. It makes you feel hopeless, desperate and angry.

I know how hard it is to get by in a place without roads. And where there are more potholes than tar in the few roads you have.

I know how hard it is to survive in a community that has been forgotten by the man who was meant to lead this country and look after you.

I don’t have to tell you that Jacob Zuma’s ANC has forgotten about you. Most of you know this by now. Most of you feel angry and disappointed because promises were made, only to be broken.

The name Jacob Zuma has become synonymous with bad news, but today I have some good news.

We have just heard that the president and the NPA’s application for leave to appeal the High Court ruling that corruption charges against him should never have been dropped, will be heard on 10 June in the North Gauteng High Court.

We welcome this news because it means that, after years of desperate stalling tactics by the president, the wheels of justice are finally turning. The “day in court” that he has always said he wanted, but then fought so hard to avoid, is fast approaching.

The 783 charges of corruption, fraud, racketeering and money laundering that Zuma is facing must be answered in court. Until he either clears his name or is found guilty, he will remain Accused Number One.

While many other state institutions have been captured by Zuma’s ANC, it is clear that our courts are still independent, and I have full faith in the legal process.

Given our country’s massive challenges like unemployment, poverty, poor education and crime, we cannot afford to waste any more time and taxpayers’ money on Jacob Zuma’s corruption.

The sooner the law can run its course, the sooner we can move forward as a country. And on 10 June we will be one step closer to putting the disaster of Zuma’s term in office behind us.

But I’m not only here today to talk to you about the failures of Jacob Zuma the ANC. I’m here to tell you about your chance to turn your community around.

I’m here to tell you about the type of local government that has transformed places like Cape Town and Midvaal in Gauteng, and how you can have that here in Nkomazi municipality too.

You see, when the ANC comes here and asks you to vote for them again, I bet they don’t compare their municipalities to those run by the DA. They can’t do this, because it would only make them look bad.

They know that all the worst-run municipalities in South Africa are ANC-run. And they know that nine of the ten best-run municipalities are governed by the DA.

They know that the DA-run City of Cape Town has the lowest unemployment rate of all the metros.

And they know that the DA-run Midvaal municipality has an unemployment rate that is less than half the rate of the rest of Gauteng.

These are the things the ANC can’t tell you, because they have no answer to the question: Why must people still vote for them?

But there are plenty of answers to the question of why you should vote for the DA.

Where the DA governs, people have the highest access to water, electricity and sanitation.

Where the DA governs, people have the biggest chance of finding work.

Where the DA governs, far less public money is lost or wasted.

Where the DA governs, people have more opportunities to get ahead in life and their children grow up with hope for a better future.

The only way to break the cycle of poverty, unemployment and poor service delivery is to get rid of the government that has let you down, and vote for one that really cares about bringing change to this community.

There is no other way. Change won’t happen by itself. You must make it happen. You must use the power of your vote to fire the government that doesn’t work for you, and hire one that will.

And I’m not asking you to make a lifelong commitment. I’m only asking you to give us one chance. If we disappoint you, then fire us too.

But first give the DA a chance to show you what we mean by a society built on Freedom, Fairness and Opportunity for all.

Thank you.