We welcome today’s State of the Province Address delivered by Western Cape Premier, Alan Winde. He reaffirmed the DA’s commitment to building a prosperous nation and putting the people first through groundbreaking initiatives that enable his government to deliver services as well as a stable working economy.

The DA-led Western Cape government has made great strides since being reelected in May last year in delivering on its electoral promise to fight for the people of the province. In the first ten months in office, Premier Alan Winde and his team have managed to achieve the following:

• 26 out of 30 municipalities in the province received clean audits.
• Lifestyle audits were instituted for all members of the Western Cape cabinet, in line with the DA’s commitment to fighting corruption.
• The provincial ministerial handbook was reviewed in order to continue saving hundreds of millions of Rands.
• A comprehensive, province-wide Safety Plan was launched, aimed at halving the murder rate in the province. In partnership with the City of Cape Town, the first 500 of 3000 new law enforcement officers have been deployed to crime-ridden areas.
• 24,000 new jobs were created in the last quarter of 2019. This was more than half of the net jobs created in our country for that period.
• 1,144 title deeds were handed over to beneficiaries between June and December 2019, making these citizens real owners of their homes.

Today the Premier announced further commitments to the people of the province:

1. The establishment of a special Safety Cabinet, to meet every six weeks to report back on the work done to make the Western Cape safer.
2. The Western Cape government will work with municipalities who want to establish their own Red Tape Reduction Units to help businesses thrive. A new dedicated Municipal Economic Support Unit, housed within the Department of Economic Development, will help to ensure that these units are launched.
3. The province has announced a 4-point energy diversification plan to help give back power to the people and keep the lights on.
4. Continue the work of the recently launched Economic War Room, using world-class methodology to address burning problems and help accelerate economic growth in the province.
5. Plans underway to finalise the establishment of the Western Cape’s very own Children's Commissioner – a dedicated champion to protect and promote children’s rights in the province.
6. 3,605 housing opportunities in phase one of the Conradie Park Development, with half of these earmarked for affordable housing. This project has already commenced.
7. Housing Opportunity Priority Group to now include backyard dwellers. This means that every time the Western Cape launches a greenfield project, backyarders will also be prioritised.
8. Continue fighting for the control of passenger trains to ensure much-needed improvement to the rail system. The province is already proceeding with a full feasibility study on shifting passenger rail away from the control of national government.

We congratulate Premier Winde and his government on these outstanding achievements in delivering on their promises and putting the people of the Western Cape first.

One of the biggest obstacles to economic growth and service delivery in this country is the rampant corruption and poor governance record of the ANC. The DA-led Western Cape government is proof that with a capable team and bold, workable plans, far more can be achieved.

Premier Winde’s team in the Western Cape will not rest on their laurels. There is always more to be done. However, the ball is now in President Ramaphosa’s court to choose the people of this country over his party, and respond to the urgent requests put to him by the Premier to allow for bigger and bolder reforms in the province.

The time for talk is over. We need action if we are to put South Africa on the path towards prosperity.

Issued by DA