Ramaphosa vows to tighten noose around corruption at May Day rally

The government will continue to tighten the noose around corruption, President Cyril Ramaphosa told a May Day rally in Durban on Wednesday.

Ramaphosa, who ditched his corporate suit for a National Health and Allied Workers’ Union (Nehawu) red leather jacket, was addressing a crowd of about 3‚500 people at Cosatu’s 33rd May Day celebrations at the Sugar Ray Xulu Stadium in Clermont‚ Durban.

He said he wanted to rid the country of corruption.

“We are going to make sure those who are found to be accountable‚ have to be accountable before the law.

“In the end corruption is not only corruption against the state‚ it is corruption against the people of SA.”

He singled out the embattled Eskom and said the government would address the challenge that it has posed for the country.

Earlier, Cosatu president Zingiswa Losi offered its full support to the ANC.

“No party will lead SA except the ANC‚” she said.

SA Communist Party (SACP) general secretary Blade Nzimande said the SACP wanted an alliance that would work collectively for the interest of the overall majority of South Africans.

At the DA’s rally in Cape Town, speakers called on party members to go all-out in the next few days to ensure every supporter voted in the election to keep the ANC and EFF out of power in the province.

Provincial leader Bonginkosi Madikizela described next week’s election as a chance to consolidate a solid foundation already laid by the party or “allow the corruption that we are seeing in other provinces to come to the Western Cape”.

DA premier candidate Alan Winde also called on party supporters not to be complacent‚ saying the biggest mistake they could make was to think that the Western Cape was safe from an ANC-EFF coalition taking power in the province.

He said all DA voters would have to go out and vote for the party on May 8.

Party leader Mmusi Maimane‚ playing on Ramaphosa’s “shocked” reaction to state capture‚ loadshedding and the poor state of the railway service‚ warned that the biggest shock awaiting Ramaphosa would be an ANC loss at the polls.

“When you ask him about anything‚ he is always shocked.

“Well I am here to give him one message; Mr Ramaphosa‚ on the 8th of May‚ the biggest shock of your life is coming when the people vote you and your party out of office‚” Maimane said.

At the EFF Workers’ Day rally in Alexandra‚ northern Johannesburg, EFF leader Julius Malema cautioned the “black elite” and white people in Sandton that the day that they would face the revolt of people of Alexandra was near.

Malema said when the day came that Alex residents had had enough‚ they would be left no choice but to occupy Sandton and help themselves to whatever the rich owned and had.

“How do white people in Sandton sleep when they see their neighbours here in Alex living like this?” he asked.

“We keep blaming the government‚ yes let us do that but what are Sandton people doing to help their neighbours?

“They are not doing anything but they are staying behind high walls because they are scared of us.

“They are eating alone and when you are eating alone your subconscious tells you to build high walls before these people come.”

Malema said high walls were not going to stop Alex residents from saying “enough is enough‚ let us go eat with the people of Sandton”.

“We will do everything to ensure that the national minimum wage is implemented across all levels.

We will also advance and continue to advance the struggle to reduce wage inequality, discrimination and exploitation.”

He called on Cosatu to intensify its fight in this regard.

He further added that government would continue to fight against one of its biggest enemies - unemployment.

“Unemployment is one of the biggest enemies we are facing – we need to embark on programmes that are going to accelerate growth and accelerate progress.

“We are speeding up the process of making sure that we create jobs. This year we held a job summit, where Cosatu participated most effectively in identifying areas where we can create jobs.”