DA says ANC to blame for manufacturing employment drop
JOBURG- Almost 27 000 jobs lost, contributing factor to Platinum strikes.
A media release by the DA’s newly re-appointed Shadow Minister for Labour, Ian Ollis, the latest Statistics South Africa report on Manufacturing: Production and Sales shows that the ANC is failing the economy.
“The data suggests that the recent economic turbulence within the mining sector has had a knock-on effect on manufacturing production, which has decreased by 1.5 percent in April 2014 compared to April 2013,” the statement said.
Seasonally adjusted manufacturing production decreased by 1.8 percent in the three months ending April 2014 compared to the previous three months. Six of the ten manufacturing divisions reported negative growth rates over this period.
Earlier today, the Adcorp Employment index was also released, indicating a total loss of 26 934 jobs in the last month. Temporary employment was standing at 27 250 jobs and agency work grew by 4 555 jobs during the month.
“Considering the parade of negative economic reports witnessed in recent months, and the recent rise in strike action across economic sectors, the DA will at the earliest possible opportunity, call for an urgent debate of public importance on the recent decrease in our economic growth and the increase in unemployment,” the opposition party said.
The week’s news cycle started with the unresolved strike action in the platinum belt has pushed South Africa’s economy onto the brink of a formal recession, subsequently compromising the employment market.
“Little to no leadership on this matter has been shown by the President and his cabinet. Instead, President Zuma’s ANC appears paralysed, by years of poor policies that that only benefited the ruling party and its chosen union partners,” the DA said.
“Zuma’s government promised to create 500,000 jobs per year, but they only managed to create 439,000 during their first five-year term in office,” they added.
According to them, since the president took office 1.8 million countrymen became unemployed.
“There are now more than 8.1 million South Africans who cannot find work or have given up looking,” the DA speculated.
The party, and Ollis, plan to address these issues in Parliament.
“It is time that President Zuma and his cabinet account for the critical state of our economy,” they said.
The ANC was asked to elaborate on the DA’s speculations.
