Officially, it is not election season yet. But the race for the post-2024 election Gauteng premiership is in full swing, albeit with just one contestant so far.
Andrek “Panyaza” Lesufi, who currently holds the title, is a politician on a mission.
From the day he took over the job from his former boss, David Makhura, Lesufi has seemed determined to ensure that the predictions of most polls and political pundits do not come to pass. Those predictions are, of course, that the ANC will fall well below the 50%-plus-1 needed to form the next provincial government.
In the last elections, the local government polls in November 2021, the ANC garnered only 36% in Gauteng — filling its opponents with hope that they will be able to form the next provincial administration.
ANC delegates elected Lesufi as their provincial chair, paving his way to becoming premier, largely due to the belief that he was their last hope of retaining power in the country’s economic hub.
He has wasted no time in trying to prove them right. Since Lesufi took over as provincial chair, we have seen the ANC form tactical alliances with the EFF and other smaller parties to dislodge DA-led coalition governments.
In some instances the tactic has had disastrous consequences — such as the election of political characters with dubious backgrounds into mayoral positions in Tshwane and Johannesburg — but the end goal of preventing the DA from developing a solid track record of stable governance in the province has been achieved.
But disrupting the DA-led coalitions at the level of municipalities has not been the only trick up his sleeve. Lesufi also seems to have redirected the provincial administration to focus on programmes that serve the key constituencies whose support could help the ANC retain power.
The Financial Mail’s Natasha Marrian hit the nail on the head recently when she wrote about the Lesufi government’s “Tish” strategy. Tish is short for townships, informal settlements and hostels.
Since he became premier and reshuffled the provincial cabinet, we have seen his administration spend less time on affluent parts of the province and devote more attention to townships and other underdeveloped areas.
In recent weeks Lesufi has embarked on a series of crime-fighting and job-creation initiatives whose main objectives attempt to address some of the most pressing issues affecting poor communities in the province.
Lesufi also seems to have redirected the provincial administration to focus on programmes that serve the key constituencies whose support could help the ANC retain power
When the ANC started losing popular support in the province in the 2009 general election, as well as the subsequent 2011 local government polls, its leaders blamed the change of fortunes on national politics. The Gauteng electorate, they argued, detested then ANC leader and president Jacob Zuma.
But as the party’s share of the vote continued to dwindle in subsequent elections, even after Zuma had been ousted, it became harder to ignore the dynamics contributing to the decline.
As the most populous province, Gauteng feels the effects of joblessness more acutely than most other provinces. Its public hospitals are straining to the point of collapse due to high demand, underfunding, corruption and maladministration.
A series of scandals, ranging from Life Esidimeni to the Covid-era PPE debacle, have contributed to the perception that the province is mostly run by political thugs preoccupied with lining their pockets at the expense of the poor.
Lesufi seems to have realised that putting the blame solely on national politics is not going to wash. So he is putting all his, and his government’s, efforts into changing the narrative.
Lesufi seems to have realised that putting the blame solely on national politics is not going to wash. So he is putting all his, and his government’s, efforts into changing the narrative
Hence the drive to recruit 6,000 crime wardens and train 5,000 solar panel installers, and the launch of the “nasi ispani” campaign.
The latter is a project that identifies vacant posts in the provincial government and calls on unemployed individuals with suitable skills to apply. So far it has attracted tens of thousands of CVs.
All of this may give immediate hope to the targeted constituencies that finally somebody is doing something about their fate, that there is a politician out there who is more than just delivering well-meaning speeches that never amount to anything.
It may even win Lesufi and the ANC some lost voters back.
But there are two sides to the coin.
Having spent the little they have to compile and submit their CVs, and having travelled long distances to stand in queues to fill in government job application forms, those who don’t get the jobs or training spots — who will be the vast majority — may be dejected and feel they have been lied to.
How Lesufi and his government manage the expectations may be the difference between him retaining the premiership or ending up on the opposition benches like his stunned mentor, Harry Themba Gwala, did following the ANC’s loss to the IFP in KwaZulu-Natal in 1994.
Would you like to comment on this article?
Sign up (it's quick and free) or sign in now.
Please read our Comment Policy before commenting.