Letters

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) in Gamagara municipality, together with other political parties serving in the portfolio on Community Services, submitted an urgent motion to ensure accountability regarding the handling of general worker appointments. This follows a costly Commission for Conciliation, Mediation and Arbitration (CCMA) finding against the Gamagara municipality. A series of procedural …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) welcomes today’s Western Cape Equality Court finding Julius Malema guilty of hate speech, and we commend the South African Human Rights Commission (SAHRC) for pursuing this matter. This is a victory for the rule of law, for the Constitution, and for all South Africans who cherish the values of …

Dear Editor Today’s report by Statistics South Africa, the “Victims of Crime” survey, shows that South Africans are under increasing siege from violent crime. The DA condemns SAPS’ ongoing failure to provide effective policing. Concerning increases can be seen in serious crimes such as sexual offences, where instances have spiked from 25,000 cases in 2020/21 …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance notes the shocking findings from Stats SA’s latest Governance, Public Safety and Justice Survey (2024/25), which confirm the devastating scale of stock theft in South Africa. In the past year alone, 36 109 cases of stock theft were reported – a 3.5% increase from the previous year. A staggering 152 …

Dear Editor Following several oversight inspections and Parliamentary questions, pressure from the Democratic Alliance (DA) has secured a ministerial commitment to investigate the millions spent on upgrading the Krakeel sports facility, should it be proven that value for money was not achieved. Earlier this year, I raised questions in Parliament regarding the R8 million expenditure …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance welcomes the Finance Minister’s decision to suspend Kedibone Madiehe, the CEO of the Government Pensions Administration Agency (GPAA), following reports of serious wrongdoing. We also note the appointment of a DDG from National Treasury as an external CEO to oversee the needed course correction at the GPAA. The work needs …

Dear Editor The media like to present themselves as corruption busters. But all too often, they become complicit in covering up malfeasance by acting as a mouthpiece for those seeking to shield themselves in corruption scandals. This is the only conclusion one can draw when reading “Jonas Speaks Out Over Dirty Tricks” in the Sunday …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance has written to the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Justice and Constitutional Development, requesting that the National Prosecuting Authority appear before the committee. The NPA must explain why it is considering prosecution for only two out of the 144 deaths in the Life Esidimeni tragedy. In 2015, the Gauteng …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) has called for an urgent debate in Parliament after both President Cyril Ramaphosa and Defence Minister Angie Motshekga failed to act against the Chief of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF), General Rudzani Maphwanya, for his unauthorised political diplomacy in Iran. Despite the President confirming that the visit …

Dear Editor For South African freight rail to be unlocked, and truly serve to grow the economy, Minister Barbara Creecy must stop protecting Transnet’s monopoly on rail network operations. Transnet is financially defunct, relying on treasury guarantees to survive, and instead of freeing our freight rail from this mismanaged burden, she has decided to protect …

Dear Editor Minister Parks Tau must not repeat the mistake of his predecessor Ebrahim Patel who took 18 months to appoint a replacement for disgraced National Lotteries Commission (NLC) chairperson Alfred Nevhutanda. With Dr Barney Pityana’s reported resignation as chairperson of the (NLC) two years before his five-year term ends, Minister Tau must immediately begin …

Dear Editor Given ongoing misconduct at the entity, the DA demands that ANC Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana immediately dismiss Kedibone Madiehe, the CEO of the Government Pensions Administration Agency (GPAA). It also can’t stop there. This comes after the latest scandal in which a finance manager at the GPAA was suspended for refusing to pay …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) has written to Mineral and Petroleum Resources Minister Gwede Mantashe and senior officials calling for urgent action against illegal mining in one of South Africa’s most critical biodiversity hotspots in northern Limpopo. [View the letter here.] This follows a Parliamentary Question submitted by the DA, available [here]. The company …

Dear Editor The DA condemns Minister Patricia De Lille’s decision to dissolve the Board of SA Tourism, while completely ignoring serious and credible accusations of impropriety levelled against the CEO. We see no conclusion other than that Minister De Lille is using her position to protect a rogue CEO, while hiding behind a flawed procedural …

Dear Editor The Democratic Alliance (DA) has written to the Chairperson of the National Assembly Portfolio Committee on Higher Education and Training, Mr. Tebogo Letsie requesting that, in its next and first meeting of the third parliamentary quarter, Minister Manamela be called to account for the growing scandal of new ANC cadre deployments as SETA …

Dear Editor The National School Nutrition Programme (NSNP) in the Eastern Cape is facing an imminent crisis. Repeated outbreaks of food poisoning and the looming threat of widespread kitchen closures due to non-compliance put the daily meals of over 1.6 million learners at risk. The DA welcomes the unanimous adoption of this motion. By supporting …