ANC lash out at DA as ‘Ramaphosa speeds away’ from Tembisa shack fire

The ANC has expressed its disgust with what they called “the desperate attempt by the DA, who of late seem to stoop as low as is necessary, in a poor attempt to remain relevant”.

“So deep is the level of desperation that the DA wants to mislead the nation by using an unfortunate fire incident that happened earlier on Friday] in Tswelopele Ext 8, Tembisa, where two stands caught fire, affecting 10 informal dwellings,” the ANC said in a statement issued on Friday.

The ANC reacted to an earlier statement issued by Refiloe Nt’sekhe, the MPL and national spokesperson for the DA. In her statement, Nt’seke said: “It is dreadfully uncaring and highly hypocritical of President Cyril Ramaphosa to have turned his back on today’s Tembisa fire. As he sped away in his bullet-proof convoy, houses burnt down.”

The incident took place while Ramaphosa was visiting the township to launch his Thuma Mina campaign.

Nt’sekhe continued: “While Ramaphosa was in the area to make more empty promises about services, the clearest sign of a failing ANC government revealed itself right behind him in the form of a shack fire.

“The DA calls on Ramaphosa to apologise to this community and to give them detailed timelines on when their community will receive services without delay. Instead of making their community into a campaign platform, he ought to have dealt with their serious service backlog that keeps the community in oppressive poverty.

#ThumaMina Residents say Pres Ramaphosa must come see “why we need housing”...Shack caught fire as Pres was addressing residents in this informal settlement. CM pic.twitter.com/JYFkPGAz9B

— Clement Manyathela (@TheRealClementM) May 18, 2018

“DA Councillors in Ekurhuleni will begin efforts to help these residents with donations of food, clothing and building materials. While Mr Ramaphosa may turn his back, DA members will step in to help.”

The ANC replied: “Following the fire breakout, President Ramaphosa immediately instructed the executive mayor of Ekurhuleni, Comrade Mzwandile Masina, to attend to the unfortunate incident and ensure that the situation is stabilised, the safety of the families is secured and the necessary relief is dispersed.

“The leadership of the ANC in Ekurhuleni wasted no time in attending to the situation, coordinating food parcels and blankets for the affected families. Emergency services arrived with four major pump fire engines to put out the fire.

“We want the land so that we can work it...” ANC President Cde Cyril Ramaphosa as he plants a food garden at the Kgaugelo Stimulation Centre in Tembisa, Ekurhuleni #ThumaMina pic.twitter.com/OzJUxf4CCH

— ANC - African National Congress (@MYANC) May 18, 2018

“The City’s disaster management team is currently busy with impact assessments while the Ekurhuleni human settlements department is busy with measures to ensure that the families will have a roof over their heads by the end of the day.

“It is unfortunate that the first point of action for the desperate DA was to issue a media statement instead of coming to the aid of the community. The DA, which is never on the ground, was in such a hurry to score empty moral points while deliberately misrepresenting facts to suit their narrow agenda.

“Today’s incident, unfortunate as it was, to the contrary, validates the ANC’s reasons to launch the Thuma Mina Campaign to decisively intervene in issues affecting society,” the ANC concluded.