City of Tswane Mayor Solly Msimanga stands in confidence together with the DA leader Mmusi Maimane before vote of no vote of confidence motion. Picture: Cebisile Mbonani
The Democratic Alliances’ Gauteng premier candidate Solly Msimanga will on Wednesday lead a march against e-tolls to Gauteng Premier David Makhura’s office in Newtown.
The Tshwane mayor alongside DA members, Midvaaal mayor John Moodey, Gauteng mayor Herman Mashaba, and Bongani Baloyi will take the march to the premier’s office in Newtown.
The DA will hand over a petition with over 50,000 signatures to the premier, calling on him to use his influence in government to not renew the e-Toll contract that is coming to an end on December 31.
The party challenged Makhura to take action on their memorandum if he was serious about scrapping e-tolls. They have pointed out that pressure needed to be put on the ANC’s secretary general and Transport Minister Blade Nzimande to push for the scrapping of the system.
This is after the premier led an ANC march in November in Pretoria also demanding the scrapping of e-tolls. Makhura proposes the system be replaced with an alternative system.
It appears the ANC may be split on their position regarding the e-toll system as Minister Tito Mboweni has made it clear that South Africans needed to reach into their pockets and pay for the system.
The SA Roads Agency sits in mounting debt worth billions due to the growing non-payment of e-tags by motorists.
Hundreds marched to the Union Building during the ANC’s march against e-tolls pleading with the government to do away with the system claiming it had failed.
The ANC’s Panyaza Lesufi also tasked President Cyril Ramaphosa to look into e-tolls in November claiming they were not assisting the people of Gauteng.
He was speaking at the National Council of provinces address in Alberton where he said a new course of action was needed to address the issue.
We are not saying we don’t want to pay e-tolls, we are not saying we are not acknowledging the debt of e-tolls. We really believe that the e-tolls in the current format are not assisting the people of Gauteng… we want to appreciate your gesture and we want to appreciate your willing ear that you are listening to us, working with national government to respond to the issue of e-tolls,” Lesufi said.
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