The Cape Independence Advocacy Group (CIAG) today responded to Premier Alan Winde’s recent comments about the Western Cape’s ongoing financial difficulties, highlighting that the province is suffering under the burden of an unsustainable national budget. Winde’s frustration, especially concerning the shortfall in essential services like education and healthcare, underscores the very reason why the Western Cape must chart its own independent path.
Dr. Joan Swart, executive member of the CIAG, emphasizes that an independent Western Cape would not be forced to finance the rest of the country’s failing state-owned entities (SOEs) or be held back by the financial mismanagement of other provinces. “Premier Winde is right to raise concerns over the Western Cape’s budget being squeezed while SOEs are continuously bailed out. However, the real solution lies in ensuring that the Western Cape no longer has to shoulder these national burdens. As an independent entity, we would control all of our own revenue, determine our own priorities, and allocate our own funds without interference from Pretoria.”
Currently, the Western Cape is forced to contribute far more in tax revenue than it receives in return. The province generates a surplus through prudent management but is continuously shortchanged by the central government’s redistribution policies. "Why should the people of the Western Cape be penalized for other provinces’ failures and mismanagement?" Dr. Swart says, “In an independent Western Cape, we would be able to fully invest in critical areas like education, healthcare, and infrastructure, without the constant drag of propping up bankrupt SOEs and over-bloated government departments elsewhere in the country.”
The Western Cape, with its strong economic base, diverse industries, and well-managed fiscal policies, has demonstrated it can thrive independently. The province is responsible for a significant portion of South Africa’s GDP, but its ability to invest in its own future is undermined by national inefficiencies and wasteful spending. As Winde himself noted, shrinking budgets and a growing population are putting enormous pressure on essential services in the province. An independent Western Cape would have the financial autonomy to focus on long-term growth and sustainability without relying on insufficient allocations from the central government.
The CIAG believes that independence would empower the province to address local challenges far more effectively and ensure that every Rand generated in the Western Cape is spent to benefit its people directly.
According to Dr. Swart their vision is clear. “We believe in a prosperous and self-reliant Western Cape, one that prioritizes its citizens, finances its own future, and no longer has to carry the weight of a broken national system.”
11 October 2024
For media inquiries, please contact:
Dr. Joan Swart
CIAG Executive Member
Email: joan@capeindependence.org
Phone: 082 574 8984
