“Where we govern, we govern better,” the DA claims.
It used the above slogan as a strategy to convince the public that it is performing better in comparison to other political parties.
President Cyril Ramaphosa fell for this propaganda and directed his ANC councillors to learn from the DA.
However, DA critics point to neglect of service delivery as witnessed by the Cape Town housing crisis, leakage of sewage in the streets, uncollected rubbish, rampant crime and violence on the Cape Flats and other working-class areas.
In the Eastern Cape, the DA administers the Kouga municipality, which is situated west of Gqeberha.
The key economic sectors of the municipality are tourism and citrus production, these are all seasonal business activities.
Along with this are scores of informal traders selling goods and services along the street of many of the small rural towns of the municipality.
To trade, hawkers are required to have a permit.
The permit is charged at R206 a month for selling vegetables/fruit and R500 a month for selling clothes and the like.
Traders are not provided with support infrastructure such as shades to protect them against bad weather conditions, water to clean their products or even storage facilities for their goods.
There is no clear rationale for these permit fees and one can conclude that this is a form of extortion.
Hawkers complain that these permit fees are excessive as sometimes there are bad months and they do not make much money from hawking.
In Humansdorp, one of the towns under the Kouga municipality, trading permits have not been renewed since November 2025.
The official reason was that there was a refurbishment of roads at the time.
In a meeting on April 2 2026 with an official of the municipality, she indicated that the only problem was a policy which must be approved by her seniors and that traders were about to be moved to another spot — which traders claim was not frequented by customers.
The shop owners never complained of the presence of hawkers in front of their stores.
Earlier in the year, there was also a meeting with the deputy mayor about the need for trading and the matter has not been resolved yet.
In October 2025, a municipal vehicle branded as law enforcement was stopping people from trading in other towns such as Patensie and Hankey.
Should you be found to be trading, you are issued with a fine of R500 or your goods get confiscated.
As a result of this clampdown, streets were empty in these towns, and livelihoods were being destroyed.
In articulating its economic policy, the DA advocates for less regulation of business activities; creating enabling conditions for business to thrive and the state to play less of role in the economy; encouragement for the development of small enterprises; and an opportunity for all.
Ironically, these are the same policies that have contributed to an increase in unemployment, deepening poverty and inequality under the government of the ANC.
From the experience of informal traders, one can argue that the DA discriminates against poor black traders.
Simphiwe Dada, works for Khanyisa Education and Development Trust
