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SACP to contest local elections alone for first time

Published

The South African Communist Party promises to bring municipal services back under government control if voters back it in next month's local government elections. SACP stalwart Phillip Dexter said the party also wants to ban tendering.

Dexter spoke on CapeTalk and defended the decision to stand alone. He said the party is not breaking away from the alliance with the ANC and Cosatu. He said the SACP wants work now given to private contractors to return in-house.

Dexter said municipal tendering is open to corruption. He said officials should answer personally when they pay more for goods than they needed to. He also said ward committees should have the power to remove officials who fail to perform.

On costs, Dexter said water, electricity and sanitation are human rights, not commodities. He said the SACP would tax wealthy residents appropriately and make them pay more for services. In his words: "So, if you're an unemployed grandmother who lives in Khayelitsha, you shouldn't pay the same for water as a billionaire who lives in Constantia".

Dexter said Cape Town's delivery of social and affordable housing has "failed completely". He said that, to his knowledge, none of the party's candidates has been involved in corruption. He added that a candidate in the Southern Cape has been charged with certain matters, and the party is dealing with the case through a disciplinary process.

Key facts

Who
Phillip Dexter (SACP stalwart interviewed on CapeTalk); Lester Kiewit (CapeTalk presenter who interviewed Dexter); South African Communist Party (party contesting the local government elections independently); African National Congress (fellow Tripartite Alliance party)
What
SACP stalwart Phillip Dexter, speaking to CapeTalk, defended the party's decision to contest local government elections independently and outlined its platform, including returning municipal services in-house, banning tendering and making councillors accountable to communities. He said the party remains in the alliance with the ANC and Cosatu.
When
23 October 2026
Where
South Africa, Cape Town, Khayelitsha
Status
Reported

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