President Cyril Ramaphosa’s responses to his Opening of Parliament Address in a joint sitting of the National Assembly and National Council of Provinces has been praised.
Political analyst and former Wits University vice-chancellor Professor Adam Habib applauded Ramaphosa’s speech, saying that it was long overdue.
“It was a good address and debate by the president, long overdue. He elevated the discussion, defended the Government of National Unity (GNU), and was both principled, pragmatic and advanced a nuanced policy agenda.
“He was also respectful but firm to critics, and called out the ‘fascists and populists’. This is leadership,” Habib said.
Delivering his speech, the president said 62 million South Africans needed the GNU to succeed, adding that it would succeed under his stewardship.
Echoing Correctional Services Minister Pieter Groenewald, Ramaphosa said the current situation gave the government of the day an opportunity to restore and build.
“We are now a Government of National Unity, formed in the cause of rebuilding our nation. We are committed to putting our differences aside and working together for the common good.
“As the Government of National Unity, we will continuously pursue a foreign policy based on the national interest, our country’s economic objectives, and in furtherance of human rights and fundamental freedoms for all.
“We will continue to push for the international financial institutions and the multilateral development banks to be reformed and to provide greater financial and technical support to developing countries to meet their most pressing needs,” Ramaphosa said.
He furthermore said that the unity that the parties in the GNU were forging would be their courage and it would be their greatest strength.
“It is time to get South Africa working again. We must demonstrate in word and deed that this is an era of a Government of National Unity and not a fleeting convenience.”
Demonstrating the kind of leadership the country needed, Ramaphosa used the analogy of a collective of weaver birds rebuilding South Africa in his speech last Thursday, saying as a country, we need weavers, not vultures.
“On global platforms we will continue to push for reform of the institutions of global governance, including the UN Security Council, and for them to better reflect and give a greater voice to developing countries.
“We will continue to pursue progressive internationalism and advance principled solidarity. Our own history and experience demands no less of us.”
The Star