Various political parties have weighed in on the State of the Province Address (SOPA) delivered by Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, offering a mix of cautious support and sharp criticism of the province’s direction.
Delivering his address, Lesufi outlined plans to attract billions of rand in investment, create up to 250,000 job opportunities, address infrastructure backlogs, and stabilise water supply challenges. He also reiterated commitments to tackle crime, vandalism, cable theft, and the growth of informal settlements.
Freedom Front Plus MPL Advocate Anton Alberts said while the projected investment figures were encouraging, experience called for caution.
“Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi once again made grand promises of investments in the province amounting to billions that will create up to 250 000 job opportunities,” Alberts said.
“These prospects are impressive and will certainly benefit the province if they materialise. Unfortunately, they usually tend to shrink drastically as time passes.”
Alberts added that large-scale investment remains critical to economic growth.
“It is a fact that without large-scale investment, the province’s economy will not grow by a cent,” he said, noting that the Premier appeared to have heeded previous calls to aggressively attract investors.
RISE Mzansi National Chairperson and MPL Vuyiswa Ramokgopa welcomed what she described as a more honest assessment of Gauteng’s water challenges.
“We welcome the clear focus on water, where the government has finally acknowledged that the crisis facing Gauteng is about failing infrastructure, not a lack of water,” Ramokgopa said.
However, she stressed that residents were seeking permanent solutions.
“While recovery in many areas is a positive step, residents expect permanent solutions rather than a cycle of repeated emergencies,” she said, adding that her party would continue engaging communities to ensure sustainable, long-term outcomes.
On crime and safety, Ramokgopa said progress must go beyond statistics.
“Residents must not only feel safe; they must be safe. Without safety, there can be no prosperity,” she said, calling for corruption within the security system to be addressed.
Matthew Cook, National Chairperson of GOOD, argued that many of the Premier’s previous commitments remain unfulfilled.
“Too many of these commitments remain unfulfilled. Informal settlements continue to grow, service delivery failures persist, basic infrastructure remains inadequate,” Cook said.
He noted that critics had previously described the SOPA as “heavy on rhetoric and light on actionable plans”, an assessment he said must be taken seriously.
“Premier Lesufi must do more than repeat familiar problems; he must acknowledge where promises have fallen short, explain why implementation has lagged, and present clear, measurable outcomes with realistic timelines,” Cook said.
He referenced earlier pledges made in 2023 and 2024 to accelerate economic recovery, eradicate shack settlements, formalise informal settlements, and strengthen service delivery, as well as the identification in 2025 of 13 key provincial problem areas, including water shortages, crime, electricity challenges, and unemployment.
Amid ongoing water outages affecting parts of the province, Lesufi said the crisis would soon ease, citing the near-completion of infrastructure expansion linked to the Lesotho Highlands Water Project.
The Premier maintained that once the project is fully integrated into Gauteng’s system, water supply pressures would stabilise.
Saturday Star