Former Joburg Speaker now SARA premier candidate for Gauteng

The former Speaker of the Johannesburg Municipal Council Colleen Makhubele will not be going to parliament after the upcoming elections but has been nominated as a premier candidate for Gauteng by her party.

Gauteng needs a woman leader

Makhubele who left the City of Johannesburg to become the president of the South African Rainbow Alliance (SARA) was announced as Gauteng premier candidate on Wednesday.

In an interview with The Citizen, she said she welcomed her candidacy for Gauteng’s top job.

“We have other leaders that have been nominated for the parliamentary list and these are competent people,” she said.

Makhubele said she was well versed with the issues that affected the province of Gauteng since she had served as Speaker of the Johannesburg Council for more than a year.

“The issues in Gauteng and the municipalities within have become familiar with me because I dealt with communities in Johannesburg and their complaints,” Makhubele said.

Makhubele, who is known for her passion for the rights of women, said it was only fitting for a woman to become the premier of Gauteng.

“Women participation in leadership is essential for the change we need in South Africa right now. Women vote will be the swing vote and decide the future of the Gauteng province and the nation,” Makhubele said.

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Competent candidates on SARA list

Makhubele said SARA was offering a list of competent leaders to South Africa.

“With SARA qualifying to contest nationally, this shows that the electorate has confidence in SARA. And it’s a clear indication that the general sentiment is that only a woman can change South Africa,” she said.

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She also said the list balanced the public officials in accordance with gender parity, people with disabilities and young people.   

“ Our Candidate List [is] a clear indication of achieving gender parity, generational mix and merit, based on competence in politics. The type of skills will reflect the priorities of the party for the next five years. We have done outstanding job in bringing many unemployed graduates, who are excited to finally get an opportunity to be productive and serve their country while feeding their families,” she said.

Makhubele encouraged all South Africans to go out in their numbers and vote on May 29.

“The Candidate list reflects our key priorities in ending kakistocracy – putting [an end to] the worst of us in positions of power like what happened in the metros in Joburg, Ekurhuleni and Tshwane and many municipalities around the country…,” she said.