People are sick and tired

IT IS the same old story. Politicians are playing their usual blaming game while the community is up in arms demanding service delivery.

That is what is happening in Western Cape.

According to a recent report on service delivery protests Western Cape is the leader of the pack when it comes to the number of such protests.

But instead of dealing with this reality the Democratic Alliance-led government is accusing the ANC and its Youth League of stoking the fires.

Last week at a pressconference DA leader andWestern Cape premier Helen Zille told the media hergovernment had called on the State Security Agency toinvestigate the "seditious threats" issued by some Youth League leaders, who threatened to make the province"ungovernable".

Now Cape Town mayorPatricia de Lille is blaming the service delivery protests on the failure by ANC councillors in the DA-led province tocommunicate the city's policies to their constituency.

Essentially De Lille wants the public to believe the service delivery protests ravaging the province are all due to "a lack of communication".

As expected the ANC councillors have come out with guns blazing, accusing the DA oframming decision down down their throats and ignoring inputs aimed at dealing with the affected constituencies.

The unfortunate reality is that while the two parties are playing their political games the city is burning because the people are unhappy with service delivery.

The DA, like the ANCwherever it is in power, must stop blaming the victims - accusing them of being political tools - and deliver.

These parties must stophiding behind the amorphous "third force" or "uncooperative officials" and implement theprogressive policies they always crow about when their service delivery record is questioned.

This country has been known to have some of the mostprogressive and democraticpolicies. It is however common knowledge that its Achilles heel has been the failure to implement these policies.

The people of Western Cape and many others throughout the country are sick and tired of being given excuses such as "a lack of capacity", whenever they demand that their rights to basic services like housing , water and electricity be respected.

What they want is a qualitative improvement in their lives.

That is what they expect of the much-talked-about new South Africa.

- Sowetan