The Premier of Limpopo, Mr Stan Mathabatha, says the ANC-led government has electrified more than 87% of households in this province and is continuing to improve the living conditions of the people.

He addressed thousands of people at the Vhuilafuri Stadium on Sunday, during the provincial Freedom Day celebrations.

“Government’s intervention in the improvement of education led to an increase in [the] matric pass rate from 38% in 1994 to 71.8 percent in 2013. More than 96% of the pupils in Limpopo benefit from the no-fee school policy. We have connected about 86% of households with clean, potable water. We are proud to mention that during this period, we have housed over one million people.”

He added that the province was characterised by extreme levels of poverty and disease, particularly in the rural areas, in 1994. “People were denied even the most basic means of survival such as access to decent housing, electricity, water, tarred roads and recreational facilities,” he said.

According to him, the “dark cloud of apartheid” has given way to the “blue skies of human rights, dignity and a better life for all”. He also mentioned that for the past 20 years, workers have enjoyed rights, including trade union workplace organising, collective bargaining, equal pay for equal work, health and safety, affirmative action, skills development, minimum wages for workers in vulnerable sectors, the right to strike, and the right to peaceful protest.

He emphasised that all South Africans have the right to assemble, to demonstrate, to picket and to present petitions, provided this is done peacefully and unarmed. “We will work hard in the coming years to unlock the huge economic potential in our mining and agricultural sectors,” Mathabatha added.

During the event, the Limpopo leader of the Congress of the People, Mr Patrick Sikhutshi, lashed out at the Makhado Municipality, saying that they had filled potholes in the tarred road with sand in order for the Premier’s car to pass.