ActionSA, EFF Condemn Panyaza Lesufi’s State of the Province Address
- Political parties, including the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) and ActionSA, have strongly condemned Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s State of the Province Address
- Lesufi delivered his speech on 23 February 2026 as the province faces multiple issues of governance, maladministration, and service delivery issues
- ActionSA accused Lesufi’s Government of Provincial Unity of being reactive, and the EFF said he made empty promises
With over seven years at Daily Sun and Vutivi Business News, Tebogo Mokwena, a Briefly News current affairs journalist, offered insights into South African politics, national, provincial, and local governance, the Government of National Unity, political parties, and Parliament.
Source: UGC
JOHANNESBURG, GAUTENG — ActionSA and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) have slammed Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi’s State of the Province Address (SOPA), which he delivered at the Nasrec Expo in Johannesburg on 23 February 2026.
In a statement ActionSA released on 24 February, the party questioned why the provincial government is fixing crises that were allowed to develop. The party’s Gauteng Provincial Chairperson, Funzi Ngobeni, said that Gauteng has a shortage of maintenance and proper asset management, but no shortage of speeches and recurring promises. He added that the failures of the government cannot place pressure on communities already under strain.
ActionSA demands change
Ngobeni said law enforcement must not be seasonal or campaign-driven, but consistent and institutional. He also called for the provincial government to ring-fence maintenance budgets, make leak repair turnaround times public, and move from reactive governance to preventative governance.
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“Restore law and order. Zero tolerance for hijacked buildings and illegal connections. Strengthen municipal enforcement. Support lawful immigration management grounded in constitutional principles,” he added.
Economic Freedom Fighters condemn speech
The EFF posted a video of Gauteng Provincial Chairperson Nkululeko Dunga reacting at the Nasrec Expo on its @EFFGautengProv X account. Dunga accused Lesufi of seeking validation by elevating some of his African National Congress comrades instead of dealing with the matters of service delivery. Dunga said Lesufi elevated the City of Ekurhuleni, under whom he referred to as the dysfunctional mayor, Nkosindiphile Xhakaza.
He also said that Lesufi did not want to attribute the combating of crime in Johannesburg to the MMC for Community Safety, Dr. Mgcini Tshwaku, who is an EFF member. He also slammed Lesufi’s announcement that the province is building a smart city in Lanseria. Dunga pointed out that Lesufi did not touch on zonal issues and other infrastructure challenges that accompany building a smart city.
View Dunga’s reaction on X here:
Panyaza Lesufi addresses the water crisis
Lesufi, in his SOPA speech, revealed that in response to the water crisis, which has affected communities like Westbury, the provincial government will invest R760 million to resolve the crisis. He added that a new Brixton reservoir will be live this month, and an emergency pumping station will be live in the first week of March. Lesufi announced that the provincial government will complete a five-kilometer pipeline which will be completed by the end of the year. He added that a 20-million-litre storage facility in Midrand, Ekurhuleni, matched by a 10-million-litre private donation, is under construction.
Source: UGC
The Gauteng Premier has come under fire for the province's water woes. During a visit to Brixton on 11 February 2026, he addressed angry community members and said that he also experienced water shortages and had to resort to washing at hotels before attending official commitments. His comments drew sharp criticism, and he later issued an apology for his statement.
Lesufi also apologized for the province's water woes during his speech. He promised that he would fix the issue and said that even though the province is making good progress, the water challenges in Gauteng need constant monitoring and support. He added that an explosion at the Rand Water plant on 27 January 2026 contributed to the water woes.
Panyaza Lesufi slammed for campaign post
In a similar article, Briefly News reported that Lesufi’s campaign post for the ANC earned criticism from members of the public. Lesufi posted a picture of himself partly braiding a woman’s hair by sectioning it into cornrows.
In his post, he praised his hair-braiding skills, and some accused him of staging a publicity stunt.
“I hate how performative y’all become when it’s time to win poor people’s votes. Not a single ounce of conscience in sight,” a netizen said.
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Source: Briefly News
