Zuma’s Nkandla pledge reaches beyond the council ballot
NKANDLA — MK Party leader Jacob Zuma promised higher old-age grants after casting his municipal election ballot at Ntolwane Primary School on Wednesday. He said pensioners could no longer cover basic expenses with the payments they received. His pledge reaches beyond the powers of the councillors voters were electing: the older person’s grant is a national benefit paid by the South African Social Security Agency (SASSA).
Zuma said better support for older people would be the party’s first priority if it gained power. He also promised to tackle unemployment and poverty and to ensure every child had access to education. In his remarks outside the school, he did not put a figure on the proposed grant increase.
The former president welcomed the turnout he had seen in Nkandla and urged parties and voters to keep the election peaceful. KwaZulu-Natal Premier Thamsanqa Ntuli also voted in the municipality, casting his ballot at Vumanhlamvu Primary School in Ward 6 at about 10am.
One Durban station reports 21% turnout before polls close
In central Durban, an election official told IOL that roughly 21% of registered voters at one major polling station had cast their ballots with several hours of voting still available. More than 4,900 people on that station’s roll had yet to vote. During the preceding two days of special voting, 41 of the 78 people registered for a special vote there had participated.
Officials at several inner-city stations described a quiet morning followed by a modest increase in arrivals around midday. The 21% figure was an interim count at a single station. Final turnout across eThekwini would depend on returns from all its stations, including voters who arrived later in the day.
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