Cyril’s ‘future’ excludes workers

President Cyril Ramaphosa’s speeches – on Freedom Day at the Union Buildings at the weekend and on Workers’ Day at Athlone Stadium in Cape Town yesterday – were opportunities to give the nation confidence in where we are headed, especially in an election year.

Faced with tough economic challenges, South Africans need a shining light when it comes to leadership. Yet, many people will walk away from these speeches and public holidays feeling short-changed as Ramaphosa on both occasions attempted to bask in the ANC’s “successes” over the past 30 years, rather than confronting the issues most South Africans face each day.

On the face of it, Ramaphosa’s speech on Workers’ Day hit the button but, as usual, he talked a good game, without much substance.

Ramaphosa said: “On this Workers’ Day, let us agree as a society that the interests of workers, of the poor, of the dispossessed, must be at the centre of the struggle for a better life for all.”

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Yes, we buy into that. But the president decided to have pot shots at the Democratic Alliance, instead of addressing the country’s challenges. Ramaphosa was confident the ruling party will not fall below the 50% mark after the 29 May elections.

“There are those who run around the country like little brakkies and saying all manner of things and nweh, nweh, nweh [sic].

They are saying the ANC is going to be below 50%,” he said. “I want to give them a very clear message. The workers of this country – and the people of this country – are not going to allow the ANC to go below 50%. They are going for an outright majority and, here in the Western Cape, we are going to show those who believe that the Western Cape belongs to them that the African National Congress is coming after you.”

Mr President, we doubt the majority of the workers of this country – those who sacrifice so much to put food on the table for their families each day – went to sleep last night feeling full and content in the future you promise.

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