Cape Town – Western Cape ANC leader Marius Fransman has put forward an ambitious plan to win back the province from the DA next year, but he has admitted it won’t be easy.

 

“It will be a very difficult exercise, but very possible,” Fransman told the Cape Argus this week.

 

He said the party was “ready to take on the DA” and “preparing to govern in 2014”.

 

Over the next few months, the party will up its membership in the province by at least 12 000, Fransman said.

 

“We will be opening up the ANC in the province. We have 38 000 members in the Western Cape currently. We want to up that to at least 50 000 this year,” he said.

 

“No one in leadership positions in the ANC in this province must feel comfortable. All MPs, members of the legislature and councillors will have to show how they are recruiting new members.”

 

ANC membership in the Western Cape fell from 43 000 in 2011 to 38 000 before the Mangaung conference in December.

 

Fransman said the ANC’s plan to reclaim the Western Cape was explained in a party document titled “The Peoples Path to Power”.

 

He said the strategy was based on five key pillars:

 

– Organisational renewal.

 

– Re-connecting with communities and civil society.

 

– Offering alternative governance.

 

– Ensuring economic transformation.

 

– Strengthening local governance.

 

Fransman said the party in the Western Cape was “more united than ever” post Mangaung.

 

“Yes, there were divisions before Mangaung about leadership preferences. But that’s behind us and we’re working as a united front to win back this province in 2014,” he said.

 

Fransman said he was convinced that the DA would lose next year’s election “purely on the way they are governing” the Western Cape.

 

“The DA is engaged in politics of deception,” he said.

 

“They have a brilliant PR machine and are governing this province using spin-doctor tactics.

 

“With the ‘Save our Schools’ campaign we’ve demystified their politics of deception and have exposed the DA and the Education MEC (Donald Grant) for who and what they actually are.

 

“They don’t care about the poorest of the poor, which make up the biggest voting block in this province.

 

“We’ve worked with those communities. The school campaign has been the most visible example of our commitment to the poor.”

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Fransman said economic transformation would be one of the ANC’s key focus areas “when we take over”.