Lesufi inherits Gauteng’s unresolved problems - analyst

Venter's warning comes after Lesufi was officially elected and sworn in as the seventh premier of Gauteng on Thursday.

He succeeds David Makhura as the premier of the country’s economic hub.

Makhura leaves the administration while residents are still awaiting answers on various issues, including the report into the Life Esidimeni tragedy, where 144 mental health patients died and the Covid-19 PPE tender scandals.

Venter says these will now be Lesufi's problems.

"It will be part of his legacy, his footprint but he is going forward now. It just points out another problem that the ANC hasn't yet resolved and that is the amount of time between the election of new leadership in the province or national and when the next election is, and that's typically eighteen months.

“So, Makhura resigned 18 months before the end of his term, so I think under his normal term, he would have probably resolved most of these issues because they do take time but I think he is leaving them for Mr Lesufi to now sort out," says Venter.

Lesufi served as Education MEC under Makhura from May 2014 till October 2022.

Venter says while Lesufi was always on the ground attending to challenges in education, the role of the premier has many more responsibilities.

"He has made education his own, he has caused a lot of enemies in education, especially amongst the Afrikaans-speaking public. But I think he has remained very visible in all the areas where schools had problems, whether in Randfontein, the Vaal triangle or wherever he was there and he was visible doing something.

“Now I think as premier, he will have to be very careful not to over-accentuate education since it has been so long a part of his portfolio because as premier. He has to manage all portfolios and oversee other people doing the work. It will be interesting to see who he will appoint as his MEC for Education and that will have to stand in his boots for the next few years.”

Venter says while Lesufi tenure as MEC was generally regarded as a success, not all the issues plaguing the sector have been resolved.

"His visibility in the previous portfolio will have an advantage, but if people look carefully, they must make a difference between him being visible and doing the right things. If you look at education in Gauteng, there is a shortage of between 20 and 30 schools in areas which are typically typified as emerging black area townships.

“He has focused very heavily on Model C schools and well-established schools. If there is something we can say about his eight years in education, they haven't built enough schools. I think fundamentally, there are still some problems in Gauteng.”

Lesufi vowed to fight corruption, lawlessness and crime in his maiden speech as premier.

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