President Jacob Zuma conducted a series of 'meet and greets' with prospective voters across the Nelson Mandela Bay Metro on Thursday.
It's all building up to the ANC's election manifesto launch at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on Saturday.
Zuma and his big entourage brought the Uitenhage taxi rank to a standstill as supporters in ANC t-shirts thronged the square to hear the ANC president speak.
His address in a mixture of Zulu and Xhosa concluded with his trademark song, "umshiniwam", which got the crowd going.
Speaking to the media at an impromptu briefing, President Zuma said being in Nelson Mandela Bay was like being home.
"Many giants of our leaders come from Nelson Mandela Bay, it is a home of the ANC. Even during the time when people were arrested the majority of political prisoners came from here. It's therefore an important place to come to, to make this presentation to the nation".
"We have therefore decided to come some days before (the manifesto launch Saturday) to meet the people. To let the people of this area know that why we are here and also to emphasise the importance of this city. My colleagues have been here for a number of days. The excitement and the reception we are receiving from the people is absolutely amazing. These people are the ANC people as we know them. We are very excited by that," Zuma said.
"They know the ANC is their organisation. They've been telling us that on Satuday they'll be at the stadium to listen to the presentation that we'll be making. Some of them came up to raise some issues that they have because they thought their organisation has arrived they must therefore present what are their concerns," he said.
He said that the ANC has taken the names of those people who raised grievances with the leadership and these will be addressed after the manifesto launch.
"So, we are very happy as a leadership. This is home-coming as it has always been. When the ANC's here (Nelson Mandela Bay) it is home. So we are very happy," Zuma said.
He said in broad-strokes Saturday's presentation of the Manifesto will reflect on how "we have tried to implement some of the elements in the Constitution because the Constitution does talk about the poor people". Zuma said the manifesto will talk to what the ruling party has done and what it intends doing.
"For the ANC to do more than what it has done in the last 20 years it does need to be given the vote by the majority of this country because it represents the majority. So, that it can have greater power to do more things. If we need to change things in order to move faster we need that majority and therefore we don't take votes for granted. To us it represents the political power that must at any given time lead the country," he concluded.
Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and Health Minister, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, visited Aspen Pharmacare on Thursday.
Last year the company said that it had been awarded a contract to produce 20% of a R14bn tender to supply anti-retroviral drugs to the National Department of Health in 2018.
President Zuma addressing the media in Uitenhage.
Listening intently to President Zuma.
ANC supporter at Uitenhage meet and greet with Pres. Zuma.
