18 June 2009

While Premier Zweli Mkhize's maiden State of the Province address has done much to identify the challenges KwaZulu Natal is facing fifteen years into democracy, it has done much less in the way of new or innovative solutions, the IFP said. "There is little in Dr Mkhize's speech that has not been tried before," said Leader of the Official Opposition in KwaZulu Natal, Dr Bonginkosi Buthelezi.

Whereas the Official Opposition welcomes the renewed commitment to addressing the persistent challenges, such as poverty, crime and disease, the IFP cannot help noticing that the Premier's solutions are riddled with internal contradictions.

"We are curious how the Premier expects to grow the economy in the middle of a recession, how he can credibly decry the culture of dependency while his government continues to distribute infamous food parcels and, most importantly, how he intends to impose fiscal discipline against the backdrop of the province's R3-billion overdraft and the ANC's declared commitment to sustained spending," said Dr Buthelezi.

The IFP is also concerned that much of the Premier's socio-economic analysis rests on outdated statistics, some dating back to 1999. "Does this imply that the previous ANC provincial administration has made no improvement on the grim state of affairs that the Premier is painting with regards to the prevalence of HIV/Aids or the lack of discipline in schools?" - said Dr Buthelezi. 

The IFP has noted a dramatic change in tone in the Premier's State of the Province Address. "Dr Mkhize's approach is more realistic - a marked departure from the high-flung rhetoric of his predecessor. Interestingly, the Premier has extended an olive branch to medical professionals (who were much reviled by the previous ANC government) and instead took his fight to the teachers' unions," said Dr Buthelezi.  

The IFP will respond to the Premier's State of the Province Address comprehensively in tomorrow's debate. 

Contact:
Dr Bonginkosi Buthelezi
082 516 0156