Until last week, many had heard very little from North West premier Bushy Maape despite the problems his province faces.
From dysfunctional municipalities, poor education, unstable healthcare and collapsing road networks, North West has one of the worst service delivery records in the country.
Instead of using his platform during the state of the nation address debate in parliament last week to acknowledge the shortcomings of the government over the years, Maape chose to paint a picture only he appears to have seen.
He told parliamentarians and the nation that he wanted to dispel the claims that there had been no development in municipalities in his province. He cited Mahuma Street in Vryburg, which he said had flushing toilets, running water and electricity. The premier even said he’d never hit a single pothole on roads in his province.
“I travel from Mahikeng to Rustenburg, I travel from Mahikeng to Klerksdorp, I travel from Mahikeng to Schweizer-Reneke, I travel from Mahikeng to Madibong and I have not hit a pothole.
“While it is true some of our roads are not in good condition, some roads are in excellent condition. That’s the true picture,” Maape said.
Maape’s bluff has not only been called by his opponents in the province, who said he was out of touch, but so did communities in areas he mentioned, as we report today. The lived reality of ordinary people of the province he leads is evident. There are potholes everywhere in the North West including in Mahikeng, where the premier is based. There are huge infrastructure problems in schools, hospitals and other government facilities.
So how does the average resident of North West plagued by all these issues every day begin to place their trust in the premier? How can they seriously believe that he is the right leader to take them out of their service delivery misery if he is so indifferent to their realities?
Maape’s statements in parliament last week will do more harm than good for his government and the ANC in their bid to convince the public that they have their best interests at heart.
It is perhaps telling that the ANC in the province conceded that some of the roads Maape mentioned are okay but that the majority are in a deplorable state.
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