ROAD TO 2024 ELECTIONS
‘Something’s got to give’ on poverty and inequality, says DA KZN premier candidate Chris Pappas
uMngeni Mayor Chris Pappas is hoping the infrastructure development he saw in Cape Town can be implemented in KwaZulu-Natal should he become premier.
The mayor of uMngeni municipality and DA KwaZulu-Natal premier candidate Chris Pappas wants to emulate what his party has done in Cape Town in his home province. He said the country’s current trajectory could create a nation of “ama-phara”.
People in KZN came up with the word ama-phara, he said. It means “parasite”, and is used to describe people who live on the streets, begging for money or performing odd jobs like window washing or car guarding, and who are addicted to whoonga or other drugs.
“We openly call them ama-phara, forgetting that these are sons, daughters, mothers and fathers. These are people who once had dreams for themselves but have been relegated to the fringes of society doing what they can to survive and numb the pain in between,” said Pappas on Monday.
“The country experiences an average of 75 murders per day. These statistics are reminiscent of a nation at war. Yet, this is the current state of South Africa. We are at risk of becoming a nation of ama-phara.”
Pappas was on a visit to Cape Town. Instead of going to tourist landmarks, he spent time in Khayelitsha, Gugulethu and Nyanga in an attempt to debunk perceptions that service delivery in Cape Town favours affluent areas.
UMngeni Municipality mayor and DA KwaZulu Natal premier candidate Chris Pappas (Photos: Velani Ludidi)
During his trip, he spoke at the Cape Town Press Club about his experiences in the Mother City, the country’s political landscape, and his plans for KZN should he be elected premier in the 2024 elections.
Read more in Daily Maverick: Unflinching Chris Pappas rises to top DA candidate in battle for KZN
uMngeni municipality comprises the former Transitional Local Council areas of Howick and Hilton, the Worlds View area and a substantial amount of farmland. At 1,567km², it is one of the smallest municipalities in South Africa.
The ANC had long held a majority in uMngeni but in 2021 the DA won 13 of the 25 seats in the council.
“We all know the challenges facing our country and the province of KwaZulu-Natal, so the upcoming election is more than just a political event – it’s a comprehensive test for South Africa.
“Unemployment, inequality and poverty are still pervasive, while corruption is widespread and many of our institutions are collapsing.”
Pappas said the elections will test the country’s democratic maturity, the commitment of voters in shaping the government, the effectiveness of the IEC, the involvement of young people in shaping the future, and resilience against the tide of fake news and misinformation.
“I am sure that we can all agree that we cannot continue to record the levels of poverty and inequality that we currently see in the country. It is neither humane nor sustainable. Something’s got to give.”
MK party
At 32 years old, Pappas is one of the country’s youngest mayors and he is confident that the emergence of former president Jacob Zuma’s uMkhonto Wesizwe party (MK) will not affect his premiership hopes.
“KZN will be governed through a coalition,” he said.
The ANC won 52.44% in the provincial ballot in KZN in 2019 and is expected to lose its majority in 2024. The Multi-Party Charter, including the IFP, is key to the DA’s goal of governing the province.
“There is a clear division on what we call the RET faction and the others. The RET faction has been largely in control of resources in the province. A lot of Zuma’s people have been sidelined from contracts and tenders.
“A lot of those people are now back because they know the opportunities that come with a Zuma-backed institution.”
He said parties that should be worried about MK are the ANC, EFF and, to a much greater extent, the Inkatha Freedom Party.
Read more in Daily Maverick: KZN ANC says Zuma has ‘freed’ the party and warns members with MK links
Speaking about his experience in Cape Town, Pappas said that under the leadership of mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, the city is doing some incredible work to fight poverty, create opportunities, attract and maintain job-creating investment, balance the municipal budget and overcome the limitations and problems caused by the national government.
“This is being done while the National Treasury is cutting grants to local governments, and in the face of incredible numbers of people semi-grating to the city region. I wish Geordin all the best in his mission to change lives in what appears to be an ever-moving target.
“Cape Town, despite what the critics say, is a place of opportunity, not only in terms of the national government’s statistics… it has also been internationally recognised.”
He said there was a narrative that the DA-led government in Cape Town neglected the poorer communities and that this often surfaced on social media and came up in conversations with voters in KZN townships.
Pappas said this is so pervasive that one might think these are the only townships in South Africa, and more importantly, that these are the only townships facing challenges, overshadowing others in KZN like Inanda, uMlazi, Edendale, Mbali, Folweni, KwaMashu, Esikhawini, Madadeni and Ezakheni.
“There is an incredible amount of work going on to improve the infrastructure that we do not often see… R10-billion into water and sanitation, billions into safety, a dedication to achieve a clean city with healthy recreational spaces, and a focus on safe and efficient public transport.
“There is a lot that we can take back and implement when we take office after the elections.” DM
Real Service to Real People.
That’s what the DA delivers.
They simply have no viable competitors.
The DA? Have a look at Cilliers Brink in Pretoria – and then drive through Mamelodi…! They say the has been there once – and was never seen again. Understandably so – if you experience all the potholes in that part of Tshwane … !
Perfect – no. The best option out there – undoubtedly.
Regarding Tshwane, I have one word for you: coalition.
Show me one successfully functioning South African coalition.
You want to see what the DA can really do? Vote them in to greater than 50% control and you will see positive change, that I can absolutely assure you.
Nice to hear some real home truths, thanks. I agree something has to give, the ANC will soon be a bad memory.
There are none so blind as those who fail to see. The current state of this country has been delivered by the blind faith of the voting population in supporting the inability, incompetence and unwillingness of the governing national political party. Poverty, crime and social inequality is the result of 30 years of supporting a corrupt unworkable ideology. We deserve the government we vote for.
Agreed.
More strength to you Chris! 👏
The argument that permanent ANC voters are offered no alternative is facile and completely wrong. There IS an alternative. The argument that ANC voters are emotionally linked to the past is also sad if true, but hogwash if not. No emotional link is going to get the country functioning, good old hard slog and the total destruction of ANC corruption WILL.
I am not a DA supporter, and have not been since 2019. But this man Pappas to me seems he got his head in the right place, along with Geordin Hill-Lewis, major of Cape Town. It would have been so great if we could have selected people based on merit, rather than parties
Add to that Siviwe Gwarube, Solly Malatsi, Bax Nodada, Mat Cuthbert, Peter Texeira, Ashor Sarupen… I challenge you to 1) name a party with more promising young leadership (think long-term party prospects), or 2) another party driven by values and principles rather than self-reward and/or ego. If you want to vote for individuals you can vote for an independent in this election, but don’t be fooled by their promises to make change – they don’t have the stature, machinery, or numbers to do anything but split the vote. For me, there is only one option.
Exactly. The DA get a disgracefully unfair bad rap, driven in the main via a mixture of racially motivated fake news and apologist ignorance.
Never a truer word spoken, Janie.
I think you mean Fanie ? …. as in Funny … with an Afrikaans, Indian, and Xhosa/zulu surname … to hide his real identity ! Incidentally a cheap copy of the the name of the central character .. in a well known movie ! But Funny … it definitely is not !
Aw Redwood, triggered by the truth again!
Yip, he’s super funny Ben – can’t look objectively or honestly at anything. You want to trigger him just mention Gaza in any way at all that isn’t blindly biased toward Hamas. Easier than winding up a cheap clock.
And there is also the ridiculous intentional? “blindness” to the multitude of challenges facing the DA – and any opposition – in our surreal political swamp, where opinion is fact and white collar crime acceptable.
You mean like in the US … where a grifter like Trump has got millions of people by the *alls with his lies and damn lies ?
Reaching again Redwood
Thank you Chris – all strength going forward.
Time for the young guns in the DA to take the lead. The old guard is alienating the voters and getting caught up in culture wars. The DA is but a shadow of the force they should be in South African politics.
If you want the young guns to lead the DA, vote the DA to come out on top in the rapidly approaching elections so that the young guns can show what they can do at national and provincial level.
true, old guard like ANC stuck in the past. The pool of young voters born after 94 , that do not vote are there for the taking , but the majority of parties are not investing time and effort to get them.
Mr Chris Pappas’s observations as well as his intention should he become the Premier is a reflection of someone who understands well the causes and sources of our problems. To me Mr Pappas is not just doing a political grandstanding, he is well-meaning and sincere, he seeks to do good for the benefit of his province of Kwa-Zulu Natal and perhaps, one day, the whole country and all its people unlike Mr Steenhuisen who also talks in a similar fashion and yet from time to time, he displays (subtly) his racist traits reflected in his belief that only people of his community are capable of competency and all other communities are just a bunch scoundrel, nincompoop and untrustworthy individuals.
This comment is misinformation, slander, and should not have passed the moderator.
Sounds like parts of the observation may have cut too close to the bone, and hence the need for you to demand censorship ?
Sukha wena. He he he.
I’m very sad you feel this way, because if you could put race aside and look honestly at what the various parties really offer the people in our country, I believe you would quickly see there are choices offering better futures to your family than they will ever get under the current government.
Too pale, too competent, too honest, and too caring – Pappas has a snowball’s chance in the KZN heat of ever being elected.
Unfortunately, I think you are right. Although the ANC reckons that they won against Apartheid, it is stil alive and well – driven by the ANC/EFF.
Sounds like you are missing the ‘good’ old apartheid ?
When someone blames the government of being racist it doesnt mean that they miss those days …its merely stating a fact and your deduction that the person misses it speaks of your clear misunderstanding of the comment ….hopefully you are not some bee deployment but a competent citizen adding value to the county
What you are describing is exactly what the South African voters, especially the left-behind poor, are looking for. And both Pappas and Hill-Lewis are new, young, and visionary politicians that are pointing SA in the right direction. Unfortunately the DA leadership is still of the old SA school. The sooner these two, and others like them, are elevated to national leadership positions, the faster SA will start to turn around. And it is not just them that can contribute, but also Maimane, Mashaba, and Zibi.
If we deliver the vote to the DA they will have the power to move the country on. Municipality by Municipality, Province by Province.
That sounds great but when your Municipal workers are ANC Supporters Service deliver comes to a Standstill , we saw this in Ekurhuleni!
IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING THAT SOUTH AFRICA IS SITTING ONA TIME BOMB! THE POVERTY, INEQUALITY, UNEMPLOYMENT ARE PERFECT INGRESIENTS FOR ANARCHY
Why all the capital letters … trying to emulate Trump ? Not worth it !
As we slide lower down the corruption index its clear to see that the only solution is to remove the ANC governmunt and it’s cadre of tenderpreneurs as they ALL lack managemunt skills because they are fresh off the pavemunt
My take here is that to continue to raise the Western Cape/Cape Town as the ideal and an indication of what the DA does where it governs is useless. All these talks and speeches and YouTube Q and A’s are meaningless because they are aimed at the “converted”.
The average, particularly rural, voter (and I know this for a fact) has absolutely no idea where Cape Town is and frankly, couldn’t care less.
I live in a rural village/town in KZN and there is an amazing amount of ANC and EFF activity around. The DA is conspicuous by their absence. Is it only me who gets totally frustrated with this lack of action?
The ‘Something that has to give’ is ANC corruption, inaction, mismanagement, poor policy, race based laws and the sheer number of illegal (desperate) immigrants – we have more than enough of our own.