OVER the past few years a dark cloud has descended on the psyche of the people of Gauteng.

Immured by scandals of corruption, government negligence, incompetence and at times disdain – residents have reached a breaking point and are no longer willing to be the recipients of lip service played out by those whose only interest lies in their own advancement.

Equally, they are not sold by the rhetoric of nationalist zealots who spew hatred, hoping to divide in order to conquer.

This has been evidenced by the winds of change that swept across the province on August 3, 2016. In the cities of Joburg, Tshwane and Midvaal – power has been returned to the people who are now served by politicians and staff who understand that governance is a shared task – that true people-centred governance based on liberal values underscores the notion of a better life for all.

In every region of the province the ANC slipped to below 50%, a clear indication that residents are awakening to the DA call for a better, united South Africa.

Having been re-elected as DA Gauteng provincial leader, I have been mandated to continue to carry the DA flame throughout the province and to advance the rapid growth the party has experienced in recent years.

However, this undertaking cannot be done alone. Any organisation is only as good as the people who constitute it.

Much has been said about the efficacy of the blue machine, the work that staff, volunteers, members and elected officials put into the day-to-day running of the party. Without the support of these individuals, it would be nigh on impossible for us to have achieved the successes that we celebrate today.

Heading towards 2019, it cannot be business as usual. The task ahead of us is too great – the stakes are too high.

We are beset on all sides by looters, thieves and sycophants who care not for our mothers, sisters, brothers and fathers. They are hellbent on self-enrichment at any cost.

It is for this reason that the DA in Gauteng will be elevating itself, empowering its volunteers, members and activists to carry the party forward to provincial and national office.

Under my watch, no one will be left behind. Under the ANC far too many of our countrymen have been alienated and left exposed, whether it be economically, socially or financially.

The DA has a duty to the 13 million residents of Gauteng to ensure the rot that has slowly spread, infecting and contaminating each part of the body is quartered and cleaned so that healing and rehabilitation can begin.

It is my honour to serve the people of Gauteng and it is with an open heart that I embrace a better future that I know is just around the corner.

John Moodey MPL, DA Gauteng Provincial Leader