In the bleakest State of the Nation Address he has delivered in four years at the helm, President Cyril Ramaphosa says South Africans are engaged in a battle for the soul of their country.
Ramaphosa warned that the economy, which was a parlous state even before it was dealt the hammer blow of the Covid-19 lockdown, will not recover if South Africans are not able to beat the corruption that has become endemic.
“The path you choose now will determine the path the nation takes for generations to come,” he said.
The president was speaking in the Cape Town city hall because the National Assembly was reduced to ashes by a fire earlier this year.
Courage and resilience
Ramaphosa displayed the optimism that so infuriates his critics, saying he was confident that South Africans will show the courage and resilience that have enabled them to survive seemingly hopeless situations before.
Opposition parties, including the Democratic Alliance (DA), Inkatha Freedom Party and the rightwing Freedom Front said they had heard it all before.
Once against Ramaphosa had shown a deft hand at analysing the problems of a country in recession with rampant corruption, security services unable to protect the people and record-breaking unemployment approaching 55 percent, they said
Call to action
They also issued a call to action, saying Ramaphosa had to implement the corrective measures he had spelled out.
DA leader John Steenhuysen said that the economic measures proposed by the president were the right measures as they were straight out of the DA playbook
“We must hope he can persuade his Cabinet colleagues to implement them, because the question now is one of implementation.”
Ramaphosa also put measurable deadlines on the steps he proposed.
The hard left Economic Freedom Fighters’ leader Julius Malema said the president had outsourced the solution to the country’s many problems by effectively passing a motion of no confidence in his Cabinet colleagues.
Cyril Ramaphosa State of the Nation Address in South Africa
State of the Nation #SONA2022 https://t.co/eBfiwD45g1
— Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) February 10, 2022
State capture
Ramaphosa addressed two reports focusing on the problems gripping the countries.
The first of these was two sections of the three-part Zondo Commission into State Capture which is local parlance for corruption.
“It is plain that there was state capture,” he said. “State owned enterprises have been looted by criminal officials. We must ensure that never again does this happen."
He promised a plan of action by June, and pledged to bring the criminals involved to justice.
“I am confident that the National Prosecuting Authority will carry out investigations into the criminal network and bring the perpetrators swiftly to justice," he said.
The private sector would help in providing skills in investigation and prosecution, he explained, and special court rolls would be set up to "prosecute those involved in state capture through corrupt contracts in fighting the Covid pandemic.
“To date, 224 official and 386 cases have been identified. There is a new intensity in the fight against corruption,” he said.
Ramaphosa admitted the report into the looting and anarchy in Gauteng and KwaZuluNatal provinces last July was deeply disturbing.
Government had to take responsibility for the inept and poorly coordinated response from police to the deaths of more than 350 people and damages in excess of 2.9 billion euros.
“There will be changes in leadership,” he said, without going into detail.
There have been mounting calls for Police Minister Beke Cele to be sacked following the report.
