Democratic Alliance (DA) leader John Steenhuisen noted on Thursday that while its Moonshot Pact offers a credible alternative to what he calls decades of African National Congress (ANC) misrule, the DA knows that politicians alone cannot fix what the ANC has broken.

Steenhuisen said that the reason the DA, Inkatha Freedom Party, Freedom Front Plus, ActionSA, United Independent Movement and Spectrum National Party was building an ecosystem of change was to partner with civil society to rebuild the country after next year’s election.

These political parties will hold a convention on August 16 and 17 to negotiate a pre-election agreement.

Steenhuisen highlighted that by bringing civil society bodies, organised communities, and active South African citizens into an "ecosystem of change", the DA would form the centre of a new approach to government that combined public administration with civilian experience and expertise to improve the lives of South Africans.

Steenhuisen joined councillors in the Lesedi local municipality, in the south of Gauteng, who have partnered with civil society organisation, AfriForum, to take service delivery into their own hands “in the absence of the local administration”.

This visit marks the beginning of a nationwide tour by Steenhuisen to reach out to civil society bodies and organised communities.

He explained that under the ANC, the Lesedi local municipality was plagued by service delivery failure such as malfunctioning streetlights, potholes, limited maintenance of parks and recreational spaces, vandalism of electrical boxes by scrap metal thieves, inconsistent meter readings, and no enforcement of local by-laws.

Steenhuisen noted that the failure of these basic functions by the local administration paralysed economic activity, affected municipal revenue streams, and seriously affected the sustainable functionality of the municipality.

“If we are to arrest the collapse of the South African State, we will need to start by correcting the severe maladministration of local government in provinces across the country. For local municipalities to be fixed, the services that underpin local economies and that ensure the sustained collection of rates and municipal revenue will often fall to civil society,” he said.

He explained that by partnering with civil bodies and organised communities, the DA would help bridge gaps created by State collapse under the ANC, and create a new start for many provinces and municipalities under a DA government.

Steenhuisen will be visiting a number of small towns across South Africa in the coming months to highlight vital partnerships in his bid to assemble civil society and community organisations to join the party’s mission to “rescue South Africa”.