The Freedom Front Plus (FF Plus) in the Northern Cape has revealed its provincial manifesto, candidates, and Premier candidate, Dr. Wynand Boshoff. The announcement this morning outlined key focuses of the manifesto, highlighting the province's unique characteristics.

Covering a third of South Africa's landmass but home to only 1.6 million citizens out of the country's 60 million, the Northern Cape faces distinctive challenges and opportunities.

The manifesto focuses on many of the usual problems facing governance in South Africa, but has particular focus on achieving independence for local communities. The FF Plus argues that each province should have its own constitution to safeguard against central government overreach and to reflect its unique characteristics.

A standout proposal is the establishment of a provincial constitution and a referendum for Cape independence, arguing that the Cape does not simply end with the Western Cape, and that its arid northern neighbour is an integral part of the broader Cape national community.

For the Northern Cape, where Afrikaans is the home language of over half the population and cultural ties with the Western Cape are strong, the call for independence aligns with a broader vision of bottom-up governance. This approach, known as subsidiarity, would see higher levels of government intervening only where local communities cannot fulfill functions themselves.

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