Pretoria – Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Lechesa Tsenoli has called on South Africans to turn out in their numbers for tomorrow’s general election.
“We call on all voters to go out in their numbers to vote, also in appreciation of our country being run democratically and not by self-imposed rulers.
“We all have the responsibility to help the IEC [Independent Electoral Commission] conduct a free and fair election,” said the minister.
He condemned the violent acts that have resurfaced on the eve of the fifth democratic elections.
“We call on communities to do everything in their power to avoid any violence in pursuing their civic concerns. It is grossly inappropriate to disrupt services that do exist and elections for any reason,” said Minister Tsenoli.
“Even as we go through these national and provincial elections, municipalities are finalising the integrated development plans and their budgets to address many of the concerns people are raising. These will be announced during June and July this year.”
The minister pointed out that the rapid growth of informal settlements and the decaying infrastructure in old areas were not easily matched by municipal planning and budgeting requirements.
“We are, however, also targeting a series of interventions to improve the management of available resources, root out corrupt practices and maladministration where these exist and increase community engagement by three spheres of government to effectively respond to these concerns by communities,” he said. – SAnews.gov.za
