Msimanga: ANC will be punished for e-tolls
The Democratic Alliance (DA) Gauteng premier candidate Solly
Msimanga has warned Premier David Makhura that Gauteng residents will vote the
ANC out of power in next year’s elections.
Msimanga led hundreds of DA members to Mary Fitzgerald Square in Johannesburg, in protest against the extension of the e-toll contract.
He said while Makhura has agreed that e-tolls must be scrapped, he has not acted decisively as finance Minister Tito Mboweni said in his medium-term budget speech, that e-tolls are here to stay.
Gauteng motorists currently owe R10 billion in e-toll fees.
"If you are are going to put the people of Gauteng first, instead of your comrades, you will stand up against them and say enough is enough. Failure to do that, the people of Gauteng will punish you come next year's elections, we will make sure that the people of Gauteng punish you," Msimanga told the crowd.
The e-toll contract is coming to an end in December but has been renewed for another year.
"You an opportunity premier Makhura to say to minister Tito Mboweni and minister Blade Nzimande not to renew that contract, as it is only taking us back, it's preventing the economic upliftment of Gauteng. It is ensuring that money leaves this province and this country. You might take people of Gauteng as fools who will believe you when you march against yourself, but the people of Gauteng will show you flames next year.”
Msimanga said Makhura has the option to follow the footsteps of the City of Cape Town which lodged an intergovernmental dispute over etolls against the South African National Roads Agency (Sanral), which saw the Constitutional Court rule against plans to implement e-tolls in the Western Cape.
He said if the contract is renewed the DA will file a dispute.