“WE from Oudtshoorn Saamstaan believe we need to be led locally by leaders who originate and have Oudtshoorn roots,” says Mlandeli Nyuka, interim president of Oudtshoorn Saamstaan.
Oudtshoorn Saamstaan is a movement which plans to contest next year’s local election in Oudtshoorn. Gcobane Clive Twalo is the secretary general and Oscar Sinethemba Maliwa, chief whip.
Oudtshoorn Saamstaan describes itself not as a political party, but as a “holistic development of Oudtshoorn and a spiritual revival of our people”.
The movement’s name was derived from a well-known community newspaper in Oudtshoorn during the apartheid years.
According to a press release from Saamstaan the movement sees their future role as “to see our community being cleaned with proper roads and housing and that there will be decent programmes to keep our youth off the streets. We need to empower our youth for the future.”
“We need to expedite our service delivery. Our people are still living in shacks, our communities are dirty with rubbish lying around, we are constantly in darkness, with no water and no food in cupboards.”
The movement also critisises the Oudtshoorn Municipality.
“Oudtshoorn has a lot of talented and educated young people who are now working and developing other towns and some are overseas. We must take back our town. In the past ten years the Oudtshoorn Municipality was twice under administration.”
