Ramaphosa admits the state is broken

By Dylan Bettencourt

• Ramaphosa sent Water Minister Pemmy Majodina and Cooperative Governance Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa to Gauteng to deal with the water crisis.

• Ramaphosa will deploy soldiers within days to the Cape Flats to fight gang violence and to Gauteng for illegal mining.

President Cyril Ramaphosa admitted the government is broken during his State of the Nation Address on Thursday night.

He spoke for more than 100 minutes at Parliament.

Ramaphosa said municipalities are failing to deliver basic services to people. He pointed to Johannesburg, where taps have run dry for days.

“Where municipalities fail, we will strengthen the ability of the national government to intervene more quickly,” he said.

He announced a National Water Crisis Committee which he will chair himself. He said it will use the same approach that beats load shedding.

Before the speech, Ramaphosa ordered Water and Sanitation Minister Pemmy Majodina and Cooperative Governance Minister Velenkosini Hlabisa to skip the event. He told them to stay in Gauteng to deal with the water crisis.

The president said organised crime is the biggest threat facing South Africa.

“Organised crime is now the most immediate threat to our democracy, our society and our economic development,” he said.

This came two weeks after he fast-tracked investigations against 14 people named in the Madlanga report. The report exposed how police, politicians and criminals work together.

Ramaphosa said he will deploy the South African National Defence Force within days to fight gang violence on the Cape Flats and illegal mining in Gauteng.

“I have directed the minister of police and the SANDF to develop a tactical plan on where our security forces should be deployed within the next few days,” he said.

He promised R1-trillion in state investment in infrastructure.

A task team must report back to him within three months on how to fix the Eskom restructuring mess.

Ramaphosa also spoke about the diplomatic crisis with the United States. The Trump administration locked South Africa out of the G20 while it holds the rotating presidency.

US state secretary Marco Rubio called the country’s agenda “anti-American”.

Ramaphosa said South Africa will not be pushed around.

“We will stand firm on our sovereignty and promote our national interests, values and the rights of our people,” he said.

Pictured above: President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Image source: @PresidencyZA