The Congress of the People (Cope) yesterday upped the stakes for the coveted Indian vote when its president Mosiuoa Lekota made an early morning visit to Durban's Chatsworth suburb.

The Congress of the People (Cope) yesterday upped the stakes for the coveted Indian vote when its president Mosiuoa Lekota made an early morning visit to Durban's Chatsworth suburb.

"Chatsworth is a significant area and I came here to meet people and familiarise them with our agenda for new hope and change," Lekota said outside the Christian Revival Centre.

"We want the Indian people to know that they are as much in our thoughts as the rest of society. Chatsworth was a stable community, but more should be done to improve living conditions."

Lekota received a warm welcome in and was seen greeting church-goers at random with a handshake.

Earlier, he gave a sermon in the packed church, hitting out at corruption and immorality in society. He said leaders must set an example, and that the fibre of society was being eroded by immorality and immoral leaders. - Sapa