Democratic Alliance federal chairperson Helen Zille says the only way the country can deal with inequality is to get people into jobs.
Speaking ahead of next week’s national and provincial elections, she said the staggering number of people who were reliant on grants was overwhelming – and not sustainable for a country that wanted to do away with inequities.
“One of the things that hampers job creation is the hurdles people have to [jump] to employ people, and the almost impossibility of releasing people if they are not doing their job.
“Those kind of things make people think it is too risky and too difficult to start a business that employs people – because labour regulations make it too difficult to do that,” she added.
She said the DA would continue to advocate for the removal of barriers that hindered employers from employing workers.
Zille said anything and everything that hampered employment was bad and needed to be dealt with.
“If you add up all the impediments... You add up roads that don’t work; dirty water; no electricity; no street or traffic lights; corruption; and, you can’t transport your product, [then] one will realise it is not worth it.
“Every now and again, there are studies that [list] the biggest impediments to investment. Currently, one of the biggest challenges for investment is the energy crisis, together with BEE.”
Zille said that in the DA-governed Western Cape they were reducing all the barriers they could by reducing the cost of energy; making [the province] secure; making sure people were provided with clean water; making sure refuse was collected; that there was a massive investment in infrastructure; and [that there was] zero corruption.
Earlier this year, the party announced it would scrap all “race-based” legislation such as Black Economic Empowerment, once it was in government.
It said it would also do away with the ANC’s cadre deployment practices, adding it would instead embrace a labour legislative framework that pursued a true non-racialism through economic empowerment of all who live in South Africa.
However, the DA would continue rolling out social grants should it occupy the Union Buildings.
“We have already said we would guarantee the grants that are in place. But we believe they can be enhanced. The SRD (Social Relief of Distress Grant) can evolve into a job seeker grant. The child grant can increase.”
The Star