READER LETTER | Jobs initiatives linked to elections

The phrase "election madness" has almost become a common feature in pre-election media coverage as political parties jostle to position themselves ahead of the May 29 elections.

But I am worried that this "election madness" may leave Gauteng with one massive financial hangover after the elections. Don’t get me wrong, I fully support any initiative that creates jobs for our people. I am, however, against job creation schemes that are hastily put together only to fall apart and disappear after elections.

I can’t seem to shake off the feeling that premier Panyaza Lesufi’s job schemes will leave many of our people high and dry as soon as the last vote is cast. Lesufi has not told us how he is funding the community crime fighting unit known as Amapanyaza or the Nasi iSpani programme. Even more worrying is whether these initiatives can be permanently funded from the Gauteng provincial budget.

The DA’s Solly Msimanga is not wrong when he says there is confusion about where the money for Nasi iSpani is coming from. Msimanga rightly wanted to know whether the programme was sustainable so that people are not sold false hopes. Desperate residents in the province should not be used as voting fodder only to be dumped after the elections.

Sipho Mabuza, Vosloorus