Zille fires back: ‘DA does more for Khayelitsha than Camps Bay’ amid Mashatile’s criticism

Helen Zille

Cape Town – DA federal chairperson Helen Zille has rejected ANC deputy president Paul Mashatile’s claim that the DA-led Western Cape government neglects areas like Khayelitsha.

Mashatile, over the weekend, accused the DA of failing to improve conditions in the township.

“During the election campaign, I came to Khayelitsha with Deputy Minister of Human Settlements Tandi Mahambehlala other leaders and there are high levels of unemployment, particularly amongst young people, problems of crime and they continue to raise those kind of issues,” Mashatile said, as he briefed the media after a church service in False Bay on Sunday.

He noted recent fires that destroyed informal homes and emphasised the ANC’s commitment to improving living conditions, despite the province being DA-led.

“We want to make sure that the people of Khayelitsha like others in the Western Cape, do get a better life, because we know that the ANC is not in charge of the Western Cape, and the government of the Western Cape is neglecting areas like Khayelitsha.

But Zille responded sharply, arguing that the DA provides better services in Khayelitsha than in wealthier areas like Camps Bay.

“The DA government does more for the people in Khayelitsha than in Camps Bay,” she said.

“The people of Camps Bay turned Camps Bay into Camps Bay. The city provides services there, but they are not free, as they are in Khayelitsha. What a government is supposed to do the DA government does in Khayelitsha.”

While ANC councillors oversee many Khayelitsha wards, Zille emphasised that the DA government delivers essential services as required by the constitution.

“All the wards are serviced by ANC councillors. But apart from that, people arrive from the Eastern Cape with nothing and often build shelters on invaded land. The DA government does what the constitution requires. We deliver services better than any other city. By far,” she said.

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