2011

ELECTIONS

VOTER EDUCATION

articles from 2011

Go and vote — Tannie Evita

The country’s favourite tannie says that the political parties’ election campaigns this year lack the necessary reinvention to inspire their voters — even after President Jacob Zuma opened his own Twitter profile.

– Bianca-Maree Sampson, The Citizen, 13 May 2011

JOHANNESBURG —- The country’s favourite tannie says that the political parties’ election campaigns this year lack the necessary reinvention to inspire their voters — even after President Jacob Zuma opened his own Twitter profile.

Evita Bezuidenhout, affectionately known as Tannie Evita, has always spoken out at election time.

After founding the satirical Evita’s People’s Party in 2008, Tannie Evita has made it her mission to encourage citizens to vote and demand more from politicians.

“This election is still being run on an old 2004 blueprint,” Tannie Evita told The Citizen. “That can’t work in a world of instant change.”

The 65-year-old comedienne has been tweeting almost daily since March and seems to be “up to date” with the latest trends in the social sphere. She said voters should not believe just any party any more. Change and delivery had to be seen.

Tannie Evita said all the parties were doing their best but that might not be enough.

“The ANC is realising it has very little legs to stand on — 17 years in power and no delivery? Pathetic,” said Bezuidenhout.

As for the other parties, “the DA has realised it has a dancing queen. And shame, there’s COPE, which is just two halves without a whole.”

Her cry to the political parties was for them to “stop hiding behind slogans and lists”.

“I want to see a face and hear a voice — and blame a fool when things go wrong.”

But even if the parties are uninspiring, the tannie insists that every citizen must still vote.

“There is no alternative to voting. Voting is the key to the door of the future,” she said. “Don’t not use it and then complain if the door doesn’t open.”

“Do your job on May 18 and know that if we do not cure this cancer of corruption with the chemotherapy of democracy, we will lose our country to the criminals who, Mr Malema, are not all white.”

Tannie Evita will be voting in Laangerfontein, Mpumalanga, while making sure that her 107-year-old mother will vote in Darling in the Western Cape.

Tannie Evita is expected to continue rallying voters from her Twitter profile between a number of tweets which lighten up daily news stories.

She has recently offered the removed Verwoerd statue in Midvaal a home in “Boerassic Park” at Evita se Perron, Darling. “He can join Vorster, Botha, Malan and some others,” she said.

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