Ramaphosa’s message of positive intent
Was that a national sigh of relief after President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation address (Sona) on Thursday night? Or was it a sign of exasperation and cynicism? Many people who listened to him would have alternated between hope – that he could finally realise his majestic vision and drag South Africa out of the depths into which it has sunk – and despair, that the task is so enormous and that many of his grand promises were not matched by detailed execution plans.
While there could have been a lot more details underpinning Ramaphosa’s promises, it was clear that the process he began last year when he took over as president, personified by his famed thuma mina (send me) rallying cry, is being broadened and accelerated.
Ramaphosa gave notice he will tackle the criminal justice system, clearly aiming to change it from being, in many cases, a legal defence mechanism for those with dirty hands, into one which dispenses real justice.
He was also clear that the work of the commissions of inquiry, into state capture and related nefarious activities, will continue unfettered and that any evidence they turn up will be passed on to prosecuting authorities.
It remains to be seen, however, how many of those implicated in the national looting will eventually end up behind bars. But it is encouraging that Ramaphosa has not let go.
He emphasised that new-look tenacity by approving the establishment of an investigative capacity within the National Prosecuting Authority, a revival of the feared but largely successful Scorpions unit of the Thabo Mbeki presidency.
Ramaphosa also appears determined to sort out the mess in state-owned enterprises, announcing that Eskom will be split into three and that it will have to come up with a new business plan.
His promises on creating jobs were more nebulous, with critics questioning whether subsidies to business for youth wages would actually help or hinder the unemployment crisis. His commitment to removing the experience requirement in government jobs also worries some that this will decrease the already woeful efficiency of the civil service.
Likewise, his promise of electronic tablets for all school pupils within six years begged the question: shouldn’t that money be spent on improving basic education? In that regard, though, the government’s plan to have two years of compulsory early childhood development learning before kids go into Grade 1 was critically important.
Improving the basics of learning right at the beginning is the only way SA will grow as a nation.
Much of Ramaphosa’s speech was devoted to economic plans aimed at stimulating the economy and, while this is to be welcomed, there were few concrete proposals about how money will be raised for important government work. There were, though, clear indications that business and investment – both local and foreign – will be encouraged.
At odds with that stance, though, was the commitment to proceed with the contentious plan to expropriate land without compensation. This will have implications for private property rights which could well scare away investors, so it needs to be handled with extreme care.
All in all, though, Ramaphosa conveyed a positive message of a government ready to roll up its sleeves and get down to work.
And that can’t be bad.