Last-minute campaigning in full swing

The last push for votes is on ahead of what many feel is the most important general election since 1994.

The ANC will host its Siyanqoba Rally at FNB Stadium today. The Democratic Alliance host its We Can Rescue SA rally in Benoni tomorrow.

Other parties will also put the finishing touches to their campaigns over the next few days. But will last-minute campaigning work its magic?

Political analyst Prof Dirk Kotzé said people already knew who they will vote for. This last-minute scrambling or reaffirmation was more for show and exposure.

Kotzé said: “The campaigning will not change the voter’s decisions. Many voters have made up their minds about who exactly they will vote for.”

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We tend to agree.

Lack of service delivery, rampant corruption, no solutions to ridiculously high levels of crime and unacceptable unemployment will hopefully be uppermost in people’s minds when they make their X on Wednesday.

Voters abroad and special voting has already taken – or is taking – place.

South Africans face the daily grind of dealing with an unequal, corrupt society.

Each registered voter has a duty to make their mark for the party they want to take us forward.

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President Cyril Ramaphosa landed the early blows of the weekend when, standing on the back of a truck in Soweto, yesterday said: “We have come to report to the legends of our movement, where our president Nelson Mandela used to live, to say ‘don’t worry president, the ANC is going to win this election’. As I am here, I can already smell the sweet smell of victory, the sweet aroma of victory.”

Our election coverage today paints a different picture.

We don’t believe our politicians, and our president, are as confident as they are making out to be.

The time for campaigning is almost over.

Apply your mind, it’s almost time to vote.

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