Watch "GHL: Seven metros could flip from ANC control, what voters want most, and the DA's jobs record"...

Cape Town created 418,000 jobs in five years while the rest of the country's economy shrank last quarter.

Its new DA leader, Geordin Hill-Lewis, thinks that number is the party's best argument for why voters should hand it six or seven of South Africa's major metros on 4 November, from Johannesburg to Durban.

He talks to Alec Hogg about the jobs data, the ANC's Gwede Mantashe getting caught on camera implying a voter's grandchild's grant comes from the ANC, a pet permit bylaw row he calls misinformation, and a Bloemfontein court fight that could keep the ANC off the ballot in Mangaung altogether.

Fifty four days out, he says nobody else is even campaigning yet.

Hope Is a Seed Worth Planting...

Hope is a small word. Just four letters.

Yet few things are more powerful.

• Hope is what keeps us moving when the road ahead is difficult. 
• It is what encourages us to get up after we have fallen. 
• It makes us believe tomorrow can be better than today.

Without Hope, we stop trying.

With Hope, we begin again.

That is why Hope is a seed worth planting. 

A seed is a wonderful thing. 

When we place it in the ground, it looks insignificant. 

Nothing appears to be happening. We cannot see what is taking place beneath the soil.

But with sunlight, water and patience, something begins to grow.

Hope is much the same.

Sometimes we plant hope in someone's life without realising it.

• A kind word to someone who is struggling. 
• An encouraging message to someone who has lost confidence. 
• A teacher telling a young person, “I believe you can do this.” 
• A parent reminding a child that failure does not mean the end. 
• A friend saying, “Don't give up.”

These may seem like small things.

But sometimes a small word of encouragement is exactly what somebody needs to keep going.

We should never underestimate the power of giving someone hope.

There are times in all our lives when the future looks uncertain. 

We may face disappointment, loss, failure or circumstances beyond our control.

At such times, people do not necessarily need someone to solve all their problems.

Sometimes they simply need someone to remind them that tomorrow is another day.

• That there are still possibilities. 
• That they are not alone. 
• That their story is not finished. 
• That is what hope does.

Hope does not pretend that everything is perfect.

It does not deny the difficulties we face.

Instead, hope says:

“Things may be difficult today, but they can always get better.”

That is an important distinction.

There is a difference between optimism and hope.

Optimism says, “Everything will be fine.”

Hope says, “Whatever happens, I will keep looking for a way forward.”

Hope gives us the courage to act.

And that brings us back to tomorrow's generations.

What kind of hope are we planting for those who come after us?

Are we teaching our children that the world is hopeless and that nothing can be changed?

Or are we teaching them that they have the ability to make a difference?

The world our children inherit will have challenges. Every generation faces them.

But we should never burden the next generation with the belief that nothing can be done.

Instead, we should give them the tools to make things better.

• Teach them to solve problems rather than simply complain about them. 
• Teach them to take responsibility rather than wait for someone else. 
• Teach them to believe that their actions matter. 
• Teach them that one person can help another. 
• Teach them that kindness is not weakness. 
• Teach them that failure is not final. 
• Teach them to have courage when things become difficult. 
• Above all, teach them to hope.

Because hope without action can become little more than wishful thinking.

The seed must be planted.

But then it must be watered.

Hope must be accompanied by effort.

• If we want a better community, we must contribute. 
• If we want stronger families, we must invest in them. 
• If we want a better future, we must help build it.

We cannot simply sit back and hope that somebody else will do it for us.

Every generation has a responsibility to plant seeds for the next generation.

Some of those seeds will be visible.

Others will not.

• A tree planted today. 
• A child educated today. 
• A young person encouraged today. 
• A community strengthened today. 
• A wrong corrected today. 
• A kindness offered today.

These are all seeds.

And we may never see the full harvest.

But that is not the point.

The farmer does not plant a seed because he expects an instant harvest.

He plants because he believes in the future.

That is what hope asks of us.

Believe enough in tomorrow to do something today.

We are all messengers in some way.

Every day we communicate something through our words, our actions and our attitudes.

We can spread fear. We can spread anger. We can spread cynicism. Or we can spread hope.

The choice is ours.

And perhaps, in a world that sometimes seems overwhelmed by bad news.

Or division and uncertainty.

The most valuable thing we can give someone else is that tomorrow is still worth looking forward to.

So plant hope wherever you go.

• Plant it in your family. 
• Plant it in your community. 
• Plant it in the young people you meet. 
• Plant it in someone who is struggling. 
• Plant it through your words. 
• Plant it through your actions. 
• And plant it in yourself.

Because you never know where that seed will grow.

• It may become confidence. 
• It may become courage. 
• It may become kindness. 
• It may become a new beginning.

And one day, years from now, someone may stand beneath the shade of a tree that grew from a seed you planted.

That is the power of hope.

It begins as something small.

But when nurtured, it can grow beyond anything we imagined.

So let us keep planting. Let us keep believing. Let us keep encouraging. Let us keep moving forward.

Because tomorrow's generations deserve more than the problems we leave behind.

They deserve the hope we plant today. 

The Third Generation: A South Africa Ready to Blossom...

I have lived long enough to witness two very different South Africas.

I have survived 30 years of Apartheid and another 30 years of what we have called “ANC democracy.”

These two eras shaped our nation in powerful ways.

Some painful, some hopeful, all of them significant.

But as I look toward the next 30 years, I believe we are standing at the threshold of something new.

The blossoming of the Real South Africa.

This emerging era is not simply a continuation of what came before.

It is the beginning of a third generation.

One shaped not by the wounds of the past nor the disappointments of the present.

But by a growing desire for renewal, unity, accountability, and shared prosperity.

It is a generation that thinks differently. 

We question more boldly. We dreams more freely.

What inspires me most is the spirit of ordinary South Africans.

Across ages, backgrounds, and communities, people are doing the real work of rebuilding.

Fixing, teaching, creating, mentoring, innovating, and refusing to let cynicism take root.

In small everyday acts, a new culture is forming.

One that values honesty, fairness, hard work, and compassion.

This is where I place my hope.

Our country’s greatest strength was never found in systems or structures.

It has always lived in its people — resilient, determined, diverse, and deeply human.

The first 30 years were about division. The next 30 years were about transition.

The coming 30 years can be a time of growth, maturity, and shared purpose.

At nearly 80 years old, I know time is precious.

But I also know that South Africa has a remarkable way of surprising us. 

Often, when we least expect it.

I hope I live long enough to witness the early blossoming of this new era.

To see the shoots of something better breaking through the soil.

And even if I witness only the beginning, I will be grateful.

Because the seeds have already been planted.

The roots are already spreading.

The next generation is already rising with courage and conviction.

South Africa’s story is far from finished.

I believe that the most beautiful chapters are only now beginning...

Building Bridges Instead of Walls...

 We live in a world where it is easy to build walls.

• Walls between people who think differently. 
• Walls between generations. 
• Walls between communities. 
• Walls between those who have and those who have not.

Sometimes these walls are physical. 

More often, they exist in our minds.

We build them through prejudice, anger, fear, misunderstanding.

And the refusal to listen to anyone whose opinions differ from our own.

But walls separate us - Bridges connect.

And if we want to sow the seeds for tomorrow's generations, we need to become bridge builders.

A bridge does not require two people to agree on everything.

It provides a way for them to meet somewhere in the middle.

That is something our world needs.

We have become very good at shouting across the divide.

We are not as good at listening.

We are quick to judge someone's opinion without understanding their experience. 

We label people before we know their story. 

We sometimes treat disagreement as though it were a personal attack.

But disagreement does not have to create enemies.

We can disagree and still respect one another.

We can have different political opinions and still care about our country.

We can come from different generations and still learn from one another.

We can have different backgrounds, experiences and beliefs and still build bridges, together.

It means looking for what connects us rather than searching for what separates us.

One of the most important bridges we can build is between generations.

Older people have experience, memories and lessons learned through decades of living.

Younger people bring energy, fresh ideas and a different understanding of the world.

Neither generation has all the answers.

Imagine what could happen if they began listening to one another.

An older person could say, “This is what I learned from my mistakes.”

A younger person could say, “This is what I see differently.”

Both could walk away wiser.

That is a bridge.

We also need bridges within our families.

Sometimes the hardest words to say are, “I was wrong.”

Sometimes the most powerful words are, “I forgive you.”

• Pride builds walls. 
• Humility builds bridges. 
• Forgiveness builds bridges. 
• Kindness builds bridges. 
• A willingness to listen builds bridges.

And these bridges don't have to be spectacular.

They begin with something as simple as a conversation.

• A smile to a stranger. 
• A helping hand to a neighbour. 
• A phone call to someone who is lonely. 
• An apology when we have caused hurt. 
• A willingness to listen before responding.

Small actions can create connections that last for years.

Every generation inherits the relationships and divisions created by the generations before it.

We therefore have a responsibility to ask ourselves:

What kind of world are we leaving behind?

Are we leaving walls of resentment, suspicion and division?

Or are we leaving bridges of understanding, cooperation and hope?

We will not solve every disagreement.

We will not eliminate every conflict.

That is simply part of being human.

But we can choose how we respond.

We can choose to be part of the problem or part of the solution.

We can add another brick to the wall—or we can lay another plank on the bridge.

That choice belongs to each of us.

Our children should inherit a society where people know how to talk to each other.

• Where disagreement does not mean hatred. 
• Where differences are not automatically feared. 
• Where people are prepared to reach across the divide and extend a hand. 
• Because bridges create possibilities. Walls create limitations.

It is time for each of us to put down our bricks and pick up our tools.

We must stop building walls. Let's start building bridges.

The future may depend on it.

Watch "Helen Zille: The Burke saga, a response to Corné Mulder, and the battle for Joburg and beyond"...

Helen Zille left her husband, sons and grandchildren in Cape Town to chase what she calls one of the toughest jobs of her career: Mayor of Johannesburg.

In this wide-ranging conversation with Alec Hogg, she explains why she'd rather walk straight into opposition than repeat the "extortion" coalition deals that helped bring Joburg to its knees.

She takes on the DA's Mark Burke controversy and reveals what Henry Kissinger once told her about the DA's chances on the African continent.

Blunt, unscripted, and not without a fight.