By Lesedi Sibiya-Diplomatic Insider
President Cyril Ramaphosa delivered his 10th State of the Nation Address (SONA) and his second under the Government of National Unity (GNU) yesterday and this year members of the coalition government were consulted unlike the previous year.
In the address, Ramaphosa announced that the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) will be deployed in order to help the police combat organized crime, gang violence, illegal mining as he expressed that this level of organized crime has begun to weaken the country.
Ramaphosa expressed that the SANDF will be deployed in Gauteng and the Western Cape. “I have directed the Minister of Police and the SANDF to develop a technical plan on where our security forces should be deployed within the next few days,” said Ramaphosa.
Communities in Gauteng that are situated near mines have been dealing with economic devastation, violent altercations over mining rights, and crime syndicates illegally extracting resources from those mines.
In the Western Cape children are forced to dodge bullets in their classrooms and families are also forced to sleep on the ground to avoid getting hit with stray bullets in their sleep. Ramaphosa also highlighted that stricter enforcement of gun licensing regulations will be implemented, as 5,500 new police officers have been recruited adding to the previously announced 20,000.
Ramaphosa asked the Minister of Water and Sanitation, Pemmy Majodina, to not attend the SONA in order to tackle the water crisis in Gauteng as certain parts of the province have been struggling with water shortages and has sparked public outrage.
“They are not sent to Johannesburg alone; they are sent to Tshwane too. That’s why Deputy Water Minister, David Mahlobo started in Tshwane yesterday, because the people of Tshwane do not have water. They are not unique, but you need to say what are the immediate pressures to intervene that will alleviate the problem.” said Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni.
“We have all seen the pain that our people have been expressing through demonstrations in various parts of Gauteng. These protests have been fueled by frustrations over inadequate and unreliable access to basic services such as water” said Ramaphosa in his address.
Economically, Ramaphosa highlighted that there has been significant improvement regarding GDP growth, lower inflation, restoration of investor confidence as well as improved credit ratings. Ramaphosa highlighted that reforms will continue under the Operation Vulindlela initiative.