Cape Town’s poor ‘neglected’ in South Africa’s only opposition-run province
Al Jazeera
Township residents say the opposition Democratic Alliance is elitist and runs a city that functions only for the rich.
Cape Town, South Africa – In the leafy, picturesque southern suburbs of Cape Town, Dee Lackay, 38, is making a new start after leaving Johannesburg for what he feels is a safer and better city.
The ambitious personal trainer used to run a specialised exercise studio in South Africa’s economic capital until the high crime rate and lack of service delivery became too much for him and his wife to handle.
“One thing about Jo’burg was that it was getting too dangerous, especially around the suburbs – so where else were you going to move?” Lackay told Al Jazeera, recounting the carjackings he witnessed and saying even the wealthier parts of town were not immune.
Adding to it, the city’s crumbling infrastructure – constant power cuts, water shortages and unmaintained roads – and his lack of faith in the government to fix it left him looking to leave.
“Potholes got worse and the [governing African National Congress] ANC was not fixing them … there were always water issues, you cannot live like that,” he said.
