THE leader of Makause Community Development Forums in Germiston, Ekurhuleni feels defeated.
Hebana, why leader?
General Alfred Moyo doesn't believe there's anyone who can lead Mzansi out of its troubles.
He told Daily Sun that he has lost hope in Mzansi's political parties. General said he has heard many promises before, but he's never seen any change.
"Personally, I'm not excited about the elections. In all the elections since 1994, there has never been any change. They've never changed anything, especially in terms of development in our area and the life of our community," General said.
Your vote is your voice
He said the slogan "your vote is your voice" has never worked in Mzansi.
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General said the ANC has been in power for 30 years but has failed to change the lives of poor people. He told Daily Sun that he doesn't believe in their promises that they'll now focus on service delivery.
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula told a press conference at Luthuli House in Joburg last month that the ruling party had put service delivery on its agenda since he took office in December 2022.
General said that what would make the Makause community happy was service delivery.
We want democracy not from above
"As an organisation, we've been advocating for service delivery and direct participation. We want a democracy from below, not a democracy from above, because that's different from what the masses have come to expect.
"We've been fighting for a democracy where we tell the people in government what to do as they should be running the departments on our behalf. But now they're the ones telling us what to do," General said.
When the SunTeam arrived at his shack, there were two big dogs in his backyard, and he was inside. After calling his name several times, he slowly came out and approached us cautiously.
General and his trust issues
"Perhaps you've noticed that I don’t trust anyone. That's why I stay inside most of the time. Our safety is not guaranteed, especially in these times of elections, as we are seen by some as an opposing group. Some will try to associate you with certain groups or political parties that you don't even belong to. You may be silenced for something you don’t even believe in," he said.
How General survived assassination
General has allegedly survived four attempts on his life. His shack was burnt down four times, endangering the lives of his wife and kids.
He said all the bad things that have happened won't stop him from fighting for his kasi.
"We founded this organisation to fight against forced evictions. We're demanding a permanent upgrading of the settlement. That's the priority for us. We're simply demanding that we be given the land that politicians have been denying us for the last 30 years," General said.
"Even now, we're still on land that is privately owned, and we have no guarantee that we will get permanent services in the future. The only things we can get are temporary toilets, communal water sources and solar lighting, but nothing permanent for us because of the land issue."
