Residents of the embattled Johannesburg West suburb, Riverlea are divided following the launch of new political movement Change Starts Now by anti-apartheid activist and businessman, Roger Jardine at the weekend.   

The movement is scrambling to register to contest the 2024 national and provincial elections promises to change the political landscape and provide an opportunity for residents to embark on what Jardine said was political rehabilitation.  

Read more in Daily Maverick: ‘We have to fix the balance sheets of SA Inc,’ says presidential hopeful Roger Jardine at launch of Change Starts Now 

Some residents of the crime-infested community however are unconvinced, questioning its timing. With the 2024 elections expected to take place between May and August, the party has as little as five months to build national political structures.    

Roger Jardine, leader of Change Starts Now party, speaks during the launch of the movement, on 10 December, 2023. (Photo: Change Starts Now)

 Riverlea is mostly a lower-middle-class area and its residents are predominantly coloured, as designated from the apartheid era. Most residents acquired their homes through bond agreements. It is crime-ridden and has made the news for a lot of wrong reasons including a turf war between rival gangs involved in illegal mining. Crime is so dire that Police Minister Bheki Cele visited the area on more than one occasion this year.  

Read more in Daily Maverick: ‘We’re prisoners in our homes’, — Riverlea resident on zama zamas war 

A Riverlea resident, Ronel De Kock looked on outside her home — barely 800 metres from the community hall in which the launch was taking place.  Speaking to Daily Maverick, she was despondent. “Personally, I do not buy it. There are just too many political parties, I think if this guy was serious about making change in this country, he would have joined or partnered with one of the existing parties. So for me, he just wants power like everyone else.”   

Another resident, Melinda Scheepers, concurred. “Why does it have to be now, why does he suddenly care and wants to make a difference? What was he waiting for all along? We have lost children due to drugs and crime. Where was he all along?” 

Scheepers said she would not participate in the 2024 elections. “No political party is for the people, they all just want a piece of the cake,” she said.   

Those who attended the Change Starts Now launch however expressed a completely different view, holding Jardine in high regard. Some suggested he was the answer to all their problems.  

People outside the Change Starts Now political party launch, on 10 December, 2023. (Photo: Change Starts Now)

Winning hearts and minds

The movement hired minibus taxis to transport some residents of neighbouring communities in Soweto including Pimville and Orlando — a constituency that was a stronghold for the governing ANC.

One elderly resident, Anna Mokgano of Pimville, was in high spirits after the launch. “I am very happy about this political party, Mr Jardine really understands our problems as black people, he spoke about everything that we need. I believe in him because he is a businessman. For many years I have voted for politicians but they have done nothing for us and our children, things have gotten worse…”   

Mokgano is a mother of three adult children — all of whom are unemployed.  

People at the Change Starts Now political party launch, on 10 December, 2023. (Photo: Change Starts Now)

“Yes I get the pension grant but at the end of the day I have to share with my children because they do not have jobs, I share because if I don’t, I am afraid they will become criminals,” she said. 

Another resident from Riverlea, Kia Watters, echoed similar sentiments. 

“I am not into politics, but after today I have changed my mind. It was refreshing to hear from credible fellow citizens and what they intend to do for our country because everything is in shambles.” 

Audience members sitting at the Change Starts Now political party launch, on 10 December, 2023. (Photo: Change Starts Now)

Change Starts Now top brass

Change Starts Now leadership comprises some familiar faces, as it hopes to attract high-ranking officials, including the likes of ANC stalwart Mavuso Msimang. Jardine said he had sought counsel from Msimang and would continue to persuade him to join the movement.  

Last week Msimang submitted a letter of resignation to the ANC, a movement he had been a part of for more than 60 years. In his resignation letter, he cited that the ANC had been wracked by endemic corruption, with devastating consequences on the governance of the country and the lives of poor people, of whom there continue to be so many.  

Read more in Daily Maverick: ANC veteran of 60 years Mavuso Msimang ‘painfully’ severs ties, tenders devastating resignation 

Change Starts Now leadership includes the likes of veteran activist (and outgoing Maverick Citizen editor) Mark Heywood, outgoing Helen Suzman Foundation head Nicole Fritz, the Progressive Health Forum’s Dr Aslam Dasoo, and — perhaps most notably — former UDF leader and Thabo Mbeki speechwriter Murphy Morobe. 

Outlining the party’s aspirations on Sunday, Jardine said it would resist attempts to restrict civil society in South Africa. It would support social grants, but holds that they are currently inadequate. It wants universal healthcare but is opposed to the current NHI Bill. It envisaged a Cabinet of technocrats, with skills from all manner of South African sectors and the ability to fix problems like Eskom. DM

Declaration: Outgoing Maverick Citizen Editor Mark Heywood has joined the Change Starts Now movement. His last day with Daily Maverick will be 14 December 2023. He was not involved in the production of this story.