Remarks by ActionSA President Herman Mashaba during Wesley Guild SA’s webinar under the theme “Called to Lead: Youth, Country and Conscience in a Time of Change”.

ActionSA welcomes the findings and remedial actions announced by the Public Protector, Advocate Kholeka Gcaleka, following her investigation into the gross maladministration and corruption in the construction of the Lesseyton Sportsfield in the Enoch Mgijima Local Municipality.

ActionSA is deeply concerned that, one year into the tenure of the so-called Government of Provincial Unity (GPU), the lives of ordinary residents in KZN remain stagnant and, in many instances, unbearable.

he news that broke yesterday about the road accident that left 10 EFF members dead has shocked us to the core. It is for this reason that ActionSA wishes to convey its sincere condolences to Mr Julius Malema, EFF Commander-Chief, EFF leaders, ordinary members, and to the families of the 10 EFF members who met their untimely death near Vreyheid, in Kwazulu-Natal.

Yesterday, DIRCO issued a public advisory urging South Africans currently in Iran to register with the South African Embassy in Tehran and to remain in close contact with consular officials.

One year ago, ActionSA decided not to join the grand coalition, dubbed the Government of National Unity (GNU), comprised of the ANC, the DA, IFP and others.

Today, we commemorate Youth Day, a moment etched in the heart of our nation’s history and a powerful reminder of the role young people have played in shaping South Africa’s democracy.

ActionSA is appalled by the revelations that the Gauteng Department of Education is transferring debt burdens to schools, leaving the already-struggling parents to cover over R300 million debt.

ActionSA welcomes the recent initiative by the City of Tshwane to mandate the insourcing of quantity surveyors and architectural services within its Department Economic Development and Spatial Planning.

ActionSA is concerned that after fruitlessly spending over R1bn on the Zondo Commission of Inquiry into State Capture, the government is about launch another process that is reportedly going to cost at least another R1bn.

In the heart of South Africa lies Mpumalanga, a province brimming with natural beauty, economic promise, and untapped human potential.

Nine years ago, during a public visit to Alexandra Township as part of the Democratic Alliance (DA)’s 2016 campaign trail, I was told about the plight of the family of the late Jappie Vilankulu, a young man who had been killed by apartheid police on June 17, 1976.

With the GNU having been in office for one year this week, and ahead of ActionSA’s evaluation of the GNU’s performance next week, I engaged young South Africans in the streets of the inner city of Joburg about their perceptions of change in the country under the GNU.

Infrastructure development is a crucial cog in any economy, more so in the context of the sluggish economic growth, housing backlog, inadequate facilities in healthcare and educational institutions that Gauteng is faced with.