2019, a year of presidential dithering and ever more turmoil
The year 2019 could best be described as the year that the dominoes fell as the country’s top three political parties experienced leadership changes, some dramatic and painful while others displayed the power of democratic processes.
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa stands during the national anthem before delivering his annual State of the Nation address to Parliament in Cape Town on June 20, 2019. Picture: SUMAYA HISHAM / POOL / AFP
Political economy analyst Zamikhaya Maseti said the year was marked by political chaos in both the governing and opposition parties.
He said it was a year that exposed several weaknesses in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s leadership, including failure to contain rampant unemployment.
“Ramaphosa is very indecisive and his policies are not yielding the expected results. At government level there is a crisis and they don’t know how to resolve the Eskom issue,” Maseti said.
The Democratic Alliance (DA) experienced a dramatic change of leadership after Mmusi Maimane resigned as party leader on 23 October. He fell out of favour with the party after its poor showing at the May elections.
He was under pressure to quit but resigned of his own accord, citing the DA’s failure to accommodate all South Africans. The DA replaced him with its former chief whip, John Steenhuisen, as an interim leader until next year’s party elective congress.
Under Steenhuisen, the party has undertaken to change course, including stopping the bashing of the ANC, which was Maimane’s style. Political analyst Xolani Dube said this was a decision partly imposed by the white businesses that had funded both the DA and the ANC – that the two parties must work together now that Ramaphosa is in power.
Helen Zille’s return as federal council chairperson was also a big issue in the party. A liberal turned conservative, Zille annoyed many when she said the legacy of colonialism was not only negative, having earlier said that Eastern Cape residents in the Western Cape were “economic refugees”.
Her election sparked uncertainty in the party and led to the belief that the DA was returning to its old ways of being the party for whites. Observers suggested Zille was elected to undo Maimane’s legacy of making the party a home for all, including blacks.
The latest political drama happened last week when only two senior members of the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) were not voted out.
The congress ousted party national chairperson Dali Mpofu, secretary-general Godrich Gardee and treasurer-general Leigh-Ann Mathys, who was not standing for re-election. Party leader Julius Malema stamped his leadership hegemony as the party boss with no threat to his power from within.
Maseti said it might be good for the EFF to shed some of its “dead wood” leaders.
State organs had their own share of drama, with some on the brink of collapse, resulting in calls for privatisation. The SA Broadcasting Corporation was saved from imminent collapse with a bailout of R2.1 billion from Treasury.
SA Airways was so broke it had to be put under unprecedented business rescue.
Eskom remains an albatross around the neck of the Ramaphosa government. A R59 billion (R26 billion this financial year and R33 billion in 2020-21 financial year) bailout was unlikely to make a dent in the utility’s massive financial needs.
The loss-making power utility implemented marathon load shedding, including the dreaded stage 6 that forced Ramaphosa to abruptly shorten his visit to Egypt to attend to the local hot potato.
Again this year government failed to resolve the e-tolls saga as promised. This was despite an instruction from Ramaphosa that Transport Minister Fikile Mbalula, Gauteng Premier David Makhura and Finance Minister Tito Mboweni find a lasting solution to the saga once and for all.
The pressure continued to mount against government to cancel the system, where Gauteng motorists are expected to pay for the installation of gantries on the province’s highways. Cosatu, Saftu and the opposition parties and civil society body the Organisation Undoing Tax Abuse intensified the fight against e-tolls.
Government was intent on strictly applying its “user-pay” approach on the matter, with Mboweni stressing the need to accumulate revenue via service payments and taxes.
The minister is grappling with the country’s ballooning debt and how to turn around revenue collection, which has fallen short of targets.
In August, Mboweni introduced an economic growth blueprint that was widely welcomed by business but vehemently opposed by ANC alliance partners who are supposedly working on an alternative policy.
– ericn@citizen.co.za
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