Ramaphosa: SA has changed, ‘whether people like it or not’
As the ANC celebrates its 107th birthday, the president addressed critics who say not enough has changed since 1994.
Former President Jacob Zuma (left), current President Cyril Ramaphosa and Deputy President David Mabuza celebrate the ANC’s 107th birthday. Picture: Twitter. (@MyANC)
The ANC’s 107th birthday is currently being celebrated, and the party has combined with the launch of a new manifesto for their 2019 elections campaign.
There are currently ongoing official celebratory events across KwaZulu-Natal, including the laying of a wreath by President Cyril Ramphosa at the grave of the ANC’s first President, John Langalibalele Dube.
These events will culminate in a rally at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, which Ramaphosa described as “almost like a pilgrimage”.
“Thousands will descend on Moses Mabhida stadium from all over the country,” he said.
The president was speaking on Monday at an event in KwaZulu-Natal’s South Coast, where he took the opportunity to dismiss those who question whether or not meaningful change has taken place since the dawn of democracy in South Africa.
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He noted the ANC was the “oldest liberation movement in the whole of the African continent”, adding the party had “set a great example to others” in Africa.
“As we celebrate this great birthday, we will be remembering and looking back at what the ANC has done for the past 25 years,” he said.
“We’ve been in government now for 25 years and this gives us an opportunity to look back and say, ‘Have we done anything, have we moved the needle in any way [in the direction of] progress.’
“Sometimes the looking back also involves other people who are very critical of us, who look very closely at whether we’re succeeding at what we’re doing,” he added, before concluding that “the South Africa that we live in today is enormously different from the South Africa of 1994. Whether people like it or not, South Africa has changed, it is a different country.”
“We have to say thank you very much for the changes that have been taking place since 1994,” he added.
PEOPLE’S MANIFESTO
WATCH: President @cyrilRamaphosa address the people of the South Coast #PeoplesManifesto https://t.co/yw2U8V4UfK
— African National Congress (@MYANC) January 7, 2019
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