Less Yada Yada, More Ching Ching: Parties Tell Winde to Deliver Action, Not Empty Promises

With less than a week to go before Western Cape Premier Alan Winde delivers the State of the Province Address (Sopa) in George, political parties have stacked their wish lists highand their patience low.

Sopa 2026 takes place in a town where “Day Zero” is only weeks away. The Garden Route is in the grip of a serious water shortage, with Knysna under level four restrictions and George under tightened Level 2D controls as dam levels remain stubbornly low.

Against that backdrop, parties across the legislature are demanding substance, not spectacle.

The DA: Jobs, Infrastructure, and the Army

DA chief whip Gillion Bosman said the party expects Winde to be firm on economic priorities. “We look forward to hearing the premier emphasising job creation, economic growth and investment,” he said.

Bosman said the address should cover the deployment of the South African National Defence Force, updates on multiple infrastructure projects across health, education, transport, and human settlements, and progress by the water councilparticularly in the Garden Route and Karoo.

“We also want to hear progress on how the Western Cape is leading with the foot-and-mouth disaster,” he added.

ACDP: Beyond the Band-Aid

Ferlón Christians of the ACDP welcomed the SANDF deployment as “a positive start” but warned against treating it as a “short-term fix.” He described it as “a band-aid to injury” and called for lasting solutions to crime.

Christians said the province remains under-resourced in policing. He urged more attention to youth unemployment and drug abuse, which he believes drive crime, and called for more rehabilitation centres and better plans to keep learners in school.

On water, he expressed hope that “enough plans are in place that we will have enough and sufficient water going forward.”

ANC: Recycled Promises and Accountability

Khalid Sayed of the ANC was blunt: Sopa would likely be “recycled promises, selective statistics and branding, while avoiding accountability for 17 years of DA failure.”

He listed unemployment, housing shortages, water insecurity, and the rising cost of living as areas where the DA has failed to deliver. “What communities need is decisive action and honestynot another glossy speech that ignores the lived reality of people across the Western Cape.”

EFF: Inclusion and Economic Access

Aishah Cassiem of the EFF said the party wants long-term crime plans, timely placement of learners in schools, and clear strategies for housing shortages and small business support”mostly those operated by African people and Coloureds.”

She argued that crime cannot be policed away, as it is “a symptom of serious underlying problems, which include the exclusion of African and Coloured people from the economy.”

Cassiem accused the DA of channelling investment in black communities to “their friends to run infrastructure projects.”

GOOD: The Crime Wall and Real Solutions

Brett Herron of GOOD demanded proper accounting for the so-called “crime wall” along the N2 highwaya concrete barrier intended to prevent criminals from accessing the road from informal settlements.

He said the premier must explain its purpose, effectiveness, cost, and long-term value. “Residents deserve evidence-based solutions rather than interventions that echo of a past SA.”

Herron also pressed for clarity on the role of the SANDF and concrete details on housing delivery: “how and where houses are being built, how backlogs are being reduced, and how new developments are contributing to spatial justice.”

Freedom Front Plus: Good News, Serious Challenges

Grant Marais of the Freedom Front Plus acknowledged that Winde would likely open with the province’s comparatively strong employment figures. “He will probably start with all the good news of what has been happening in the Western Cape.”

But he warned of serious issues: a 600,000 housing shortage, crime as a major headache (“there is a big plan that has failed”), and ongoing water and sanitation problems.

“Despite the good record being given to the DA, there are some serious matters that the premier will have to give us clarity on in how he’s going to tackle it in the short to medium term,” Marais said.

The Context: Day Zero Looms

Sopa 2026 takes place under gathering cloudsliterally and figuratively. The Garden Route drought has raised fears of a repeat of past “Day Zero” scenarios. Housing waiting lists stretch endlessly. Crime statistics show murders rising, with around 1,160 killings recorded in the second quarter of 2025a 9% increase concentrated in Cape Town precincts.

Parties across the spectrum agree on one thing: this is not the year for empty promises. As one put it, “less yada yada, more ching ching.” Deliver action, or face the consequences.

Winde will address the province on Wednesday. The people are listeningand they’ve heard it all before.

{Source: IOL}

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