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African National Congress (ANC) treasurer-general Paul Mashatile says there is consensus within the ANC that President Cyril Ramaphosa should be given a second term at the helm of the party.

He said the government would only be able to implement policy reforms and ambitious undertakings made by Ramaphosa in his State of the Nation Address (SoNA) if he remained ANC president.

Delivering a keynote address during a post-SoNA breakfast engagement hosted by the Progressive Business Forum, Mashatile said the country's economic fortunes were tied to the state of affairs in the governing party.

"The members of the ANC feel strongly that the president should make himself available for another term so that the party would be able to continue the programme of tackling corruption," he said.

Mashatile added that the government would, therefore, only succeed in implementing the bold projects of infrastructure rollouts and policy reforms announced during Ramaphosa’s SoNA if the "ANC itself is cohesive, strong and working together".

"The business sector, economists, and other bodies can say whatever they want about growing the economy, but if there is no good governance, then what they say would only be wishful thinking."

Ramaphosa delivered his sixth SoNA on Thursday in what was deemed a pro-business speech aimed at appeasing the markets.

The president reflected on State capture and corruption, saying there was no doubt that there was State capture in the country.

Mashatile told business leaders on Friday that Ramaphosa, since taking office, had been committed to tackling corruption and making sure that capable people run state institutions and departments.

"You will remember that the first thing he did when he took over as president, he appointed new boards and made sure that State-owned enterprises appoint new CEOs. He has been at the forefront of the party’s renewal project."

He was also emphatic in cautioning ANC members that, even during this "eventful year" when the party is expected to hold a national elective conference, they ought to remember that internal squabbles had an impact on the country’s economic stability.

"As a leader of the ANC, I can’t say anything without reflecting on my own party. This is going to be a very eventful year for us as the ANC. Eventful in the sense that, as the ANC, we are going into an elective conference in December where the top six’s term would come to an end."

Mashatile added that new leadership would be chosen, or retained, but what was important was that the renewal project continued.

"If they want us to come back [into part leadership positions], I’m sure we will make ourselves available."

He said that while the other top-six members’ positions may be contested, the party was almost at a consensus that Ramaphosa should avail himself for a second term so that the process of resuscitating an economy ravaged by state capture could continue.

It was impossible to make advances in growing the economy and bettering the lives of citizens during the previous administration because of the individuals that had been placed at the helm of key positions, Mashatile said.

"If the ANC does not come back above 50% during the 2024 elections, there will be no party that will replace us. The country would have to go into a coalition government and as we know, coalitions are very unstable seeing from the metros currently under this form of administration," he added.

He promised that the ANC would fix itself and make sure people had basic services, thereby bringing back trust in the party.

One of the most effective means of addressing citizens’ basic needs was through creating employment, he added.

"The president announced that government will make available about R100-billion for infrastructure in our country, and therefore also asked the private sector to come on board.

"There are a number of things that we need to do as a country. We need to invest heavily in infrastructure as it is one of those areas that will c...

Following his much anticipated 2022 State of the Nation Address (SoNA) on Thursday night, President Cyril Ramaphosa received some mixed reactions to his speech.

Leader of the Democratic Alliance (DA) John Steenhuisen commended Ramaphosa for some aspects of his speech, which was delivered at the Cape Town City Hall.

The DA said it was pleased when Ramaphosa said that government does not create jobs but rather that businesses create jobs.

Ramaphosa acknowledged that government must create conditions to enable the private sector to create employment.

The DA wants to see Ramaphosa significantly reform labour legislation and downsize his public sector.

However, Steenhuisen said the President missed an opportunity to inform the nation as to when all his plans would be implemented.

“The proof of the pudding is in the eating and so we caution all South Africans to hold the applause until these announcements become actions, if they ever do,” the DA leader said.

The recent report of the expert panel into the July 2021 unrest concluded that government’s initial handling of the events was inept.

Inkatha Freedom Party (IFP) treasurer-general Narend Singh said for Ramaphosa to admit that Cabinet will take full responsibility was a big, bold step.

“If the President does not take action he would have failed not only his political party but the country as a whole,” said Singh.

GOOD party MP Brett Herron said although the President spoke extensively about jobs he wanted to hear when the targets would be achieved.

Further, Herron said while it was encouraging to hear that there was a commitment to pursue the outcomes of the Zondo Commission’s State Capture report, the GOOD party was concerned that the National Prosecution Authority was under-resourced.

On the extension of a basic income grant for the needy to March 2023, Herron said his party welcomed the extension and added that it was time for South Africa to commit to a permanent social security grant.

African National Congress chairperson Gwede Mantashe pointed out that while the President outlined government’s vision, it was the duty of the Ministers to develop execution plans.

He said the vision was clear and focused on the management of the Covid-19 pandemic, the economy and security.

African Christian Democratic Party (ACDP) leader Kenneth Meshoe said the President made a number of promises that had been repeated over the years, such as intensifying the fight against gender-based violence.

However, like Steenhuisen, Meshoe gave credit to Ramaphosa for saying that it was not government that created jobs.

On the July unrest, Meshoe said the ACDP was disappointed that no decisive action had been taken against those responsible for national security as people lost their assets, jobs and even lives.

JOBS

SA Canegrowers chairperson Andrew Russell said the organisation welcomed Ramaphosa’s recognition of the sugar industry’s efforts to support and empower small-scale growers for success.

He said the R225-million in transformation funding, raised from grower and miller contributions, was evidence of the industry’s commitment not only to its recovery, but also to its growth and transformation, guaranteeing a future in the industry for generations to come.

“SA Canegrowers will, therefore, be looking to Finance Minister [Enoch] Godongwana’s Budget Speech in the hope that he will announce the scrapping of the Health Promotion Levy which has caused thousands of rural job losses within the sugar industry since its implementation in 2018,” said Russell.

Spokesperson for trade union UASA Abigail Moyo said cutting red tape for businesses would help entrepreneurs and owner-managers get startups off the ground sooner, and grow and create jobs.

Minerals Council South Africa CEO Roger Baxter said although the President was able to outline measures to address the key challenges to the economy, there was a need for urgent, tangible action from the State to enact these strategies.

“We need to move from theor...

A senior manager at the Gauteng health department during the Life Esidimeni tragedy says she wishes she had done things differently.

Testifying at the Life Esidimeni inquest at the Gauteng High Court sitting in Pretoria, Sophie Lenkwane said, in hindsight, she would have done some things differently.

Lenkwane was the deputy director-general in the Gauteng health department at the time the mental health patients were transferred to NGOs which did not have capacity.

The inquest aimed to determine if anyone could be held criminally liable for the deaths of 144 mental health patients. They died after being moved from Life Esidimeni facilities to the NGOs.

Asked what she would have done differently, Lenkwane, on Thursday, said:

Regarding files of the patients, I would have read through and see if all the documents are being supplied and the medication also.

On Wednesday, the inquest heard that NGO owners would testify that they received patients with incomplete files which did not contain all their health condition information. They were also discharged with a small supply of medication.

Lenkwane, on Wednesday, also told the inquest she was unhappy she was moved to the Life Esidimeni Waverley Care Centre to oversee the project. She said the time frames for the moves were too short.

Former head of mental health Makgabo Manamela's lawyer, advocate Russell Sibara, questioned Lenkwane about patients not only dying at private facilities.

Some patients died at public health facilities like the Cullinan Care and Rehabilitation Centre.

Sibara said at least 15 people died at public facilities.

"It paints a picture of a government institution with all the resources, [but] 15 mental care users died. This set of facts, can they be attributed to the [Gauteng mental health] directorate which Dr Manamela was in charge [of]?"

Lenkwane replied: "I cannot comment on that, my lady."

Asked if the deaths could be attributed to her as she was in charge of mental health hospitals in the province, Lenkwane said: "I don't have any comment."

Sibara asked Lenkwane if she had investigated the deaths of two patients at Weskoppies Psychiatric Hospital.

"I was not delegated to investigate, my lady. I didn't investigate," said Lenkwane.

The inquest continues.

The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) has set itself an ambitious target of growing its membership by one million come the end of 2022.

The party plans to embark on a recruitment campaign in Soweto in late February. This year marks nine years since the EFF's launch in 2013.

The party's war council held a meeting in Cape Town this week. It has, however, not revealed what its current membership figures are.

The political party has seen some growth in its electoral support over the past few years, but its leaders want membership growth ahead of the national elections in 2024.

To achieve this goal, the EFF will be giving a target to each province, which the party's central command team will monitor closely.

It will also be deploying its leadership across the various provinces to ensure a continued growth path.

At the organisation's plenum in January, a decision was taken to disband the EFF leadership in Limpopo following what the party described as a dismal electoral performance. In the province, the party lost 25 council seats.

Mbuyiseni Ndlozi will coordinate the rebuilding of the EFF in Limpopo.

The province is symbolic because it is the birthplace of its two most senior leaders, Julius Malema and his deputy, Floyd Shivambu.

EFF ninth birthday bash

The EFF war council said the party's ninth birthday celebrations would be hosted in the Western Cape.

"The war council further deliberated on plans to host the 9th Anniversary of the EFF in the Western Cape, where those who conquered South Africa first set their sails. It is in the Western Cape, where white racism thrives, and as an organisation opposed to white supremacy in all of its manifestations, the EFF will celebrate nine years of fighting racism at the seat of white power," the party said in a statement on Thursday.

Meanwhile, the party has decided to remove Vuyani Pambo as its national spokesperson.

Pambo will now head up the office of the EFF presidency.

Leigh-Anne Mathys, who served as the treasurer-general, has been appointed as the party's spokesperson, alongside Sinawo Tambo, an EFF MP.

The EFF also plans to embark on a series of campaigns this year. These include a programme to discourage South Africa's "dependency" on loans from the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund.

President Cyril Ramaphosa, who is up for re-election as head of the ruling African National Congress in December, delivers his annual state-of-the-nation address to lawmakers on Thursday.

The speech, which will take place in Cape Town’s city hall for the first time because part of the parliamentary complex was gutted by a fire last month, is scheduled to begin at 7pm local time.

Here are five key things to watch for:

1. Income grants

The government has been paying South Africans who have no other income R350 a month to help shield them from the economic devastation wrought by the coronavirus pandemic. The grant is set to expire next month and Ramaphosa is facing calls to extend it or introduce an indefinite monthly stipend for the poor. While windfall revenue from a global commodities boom has given the National Treasury some headroom to bolster spending on welfare, he risks extending a benefit that may prove difficult -- if not impossible -- to roll back.

2. Pandemic response

South Africa was ground zero for an outbreak of the omicron coronavirus variant, but has now exited a fourth wave of Covid-19 infections. The country has scrapped almost all pandemic-related restrictions, although civil-rights groups and opposition parties are still urging Ramaphosa to end a state of disaster that’s been in place since the first outbreak in 2020, saying it gives the government too much power. Health department officials counter that they need latitude to speedily take action to reimpose curbs should the need arise again, and Ramaphosa may concur. He is likely to elaborate on plans to make vaccines mandatory at workplaces and some public venues.

3. Energy crisis

Ramaphosa has been promising to address an energy crisis that’s been hobbling the economy since he took office in early 2018, yet the country is still contending with rolling blackouts. The president may outline plans to accelerate and streamline the procurement of more electricity from independent producers and elaborate on the tortuous process of turning around embattled state power utility Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd.

4. Law and order

Ramaphosa has identified the fight against graft, which became endemic during his predecessor Jacob Zuma’s nine-year rule, as a top priority. Efforts are underway to try and recoup the more than R500-billion he estimates was stolen from state coffers, with only a fraction recovered so far and not a single high-profile official successfully prosecuted. A judicial panel that spent the past three years probing what’s become known as state capture recommended that several politicians and officials be investigated and possibly charged. It also came up with a raft of recommendations on how taxpayer funds should be protected. While Ramaphosa has said he will only act on the commission’s report after it’s been presented to parliament, he’s hinted that law-enforcement agencies could be given more money to beef up their capacity. The president may also respond to the findings of a panel that castigated the security services for their handling of riots that erupted last year -- after Zuma was jailed on contempt of court charges -- and claimed 354 lives.

5. Work permits for foreigners

Africa’s most-industrialized economy has long been a magnet for millions of economic migrants from the rest of the continent. Their presence has sparked resentment among many locals, who see them as competitors for jobs, housing and other resources, and there have been intermittent outbreaks of xenophobic violence. Last year, the government said it will end a more than decade-old program that allowed about 200 000 Zimbabweans to live and work in the country. Ramaphosa may announce further measures to try and preserve jobs for locals and reduce a 35% unemployment rate, but will need to ensure any measures don’t stoke undue tension with his peers elsewhere on the continent.

An index measuring South African business sentiment rose to a three-month high in January after coronavirus restrictions were eased following the country’s exit from a fourth wave of infections.

The South African Chamber of Commerce and Industry business confidence index rose to 94.1, from 92 in December, the group said Wednesday in an emailed statement.

Africa’s most-industrialized economy is still reeling from the impact of the pandemic and the imposition of travel bans after its discovery of the omicron variant, supply-chain blockages, deadly riots and looting that erupted in July, port stoppages and on-going electricity supply constraints.

While last year’s “non-economic incidents had a negative impact on the economy, business resilience and tenacity” kept it from being thrown into uncertainty and disarray, Sacci said.

“Despite the fact that the business climate is not ideal, particularly for attracting much-needed fixed investment, society is determined to work toward a more stable social environment and a growing economy.”

It’s critical for Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana to set a clear path forward in his annual budget scheduled for February 23, the group said. Addressing high levels of government and household debt, maladministration and corruption in the public sector and restoring the country’s investment-grade credit ratings are key to reviving business and investor sentiment, according to Sacci.

Helen Suzman Foundation director Nicole Fritz on Wednesday expressed disappointment at the “degraded” process that was the Judicial Service Commission’s (JSC’s) recent interviews for the Chief Justice position.

For the first time last week South Africans witnessed the process of interviewing the candidates for the country’s next Chief Justice, to replace Chief Justice Mogoeng Mogoeng whose term came to an end in October last year.

Fritz says the foundation recognised that the path to this point for Justice Mandisa Maya in particular – as a woman in a notoriously sexist profession – must have been harder than for her male counterparts.

Commenting on the differential treatment given to the candidates in their questioning she questioned why Justice Maya should attract so many questions relating to gender, in an approach that seemed unquestionably patronising at times, making for a situation in which it was next to impossible to adequately or meaningfully compare the candidates.

Fritz said the South African public were spectacularly let down and subjected to a spectacle that was both irrational and unfair.

She added that in contravention of its own practice, and basic principles of justice, the JSC failed to notify Judge President Dunstan Mlambo ahead of time not only of the damning, but a potentially defamatory, line of questioning it intended pursuing.

She added that the line of questioning related to an entirely unsubstantiated rumour of sexual misconduct and was sustained for what would have been near half of the time originally allocated for Mlambo’s interview.

During Acting Chief Justice Raymond Zondo examination, the foundation says explicit political agendas were pursued.

“It is worth noting that towards the end of the interview of Acting Chief Justice Zondo, he became, it seemed, entirely superfluous to the interview; it being used instead by Julius Malema to wage a political fight with the Minister of Justice about his involvement in the appointment of acting justices to the Constitutional Court, “ explained Fritz.

She added that the Constitution affords the President the power to appoint the Chief Justice of the country, having consulted with the JSC and leaders of parties in the National Assembly.

“The debasement of the interview process, the abuse of the JSC’s powers and role, and the shameful conduct of certain JSC commissioners means that whoever assumes the post of Chief Justice would begin her or his tenure denied the full confidence of the public,” she concluded.

Former Democratic Alliance (DA) federal chairperson and Nelson Mandela Bay mayor Athol Trollip on Wednesday joined ActionSA, saying his longing for active change is the main reason he decided to join the party.

ActionSA national chairperson Michael Beaumont revealed Trollip as a new addition to the party at a press conference at the Radisson Blu Hotel Port Elizabeth in Gqeberha.

Trollip will be taking up the role as the Party’s Eastern Cape provincial chairperson.

Trollip left the opposition party in 2019 shortly after leader Mmusi Maimane resigned.

Two weeks ago the party revealed former DA Midvaal mayor Bongani Baloyi as a new addition.

“Why am I joining ActionSA? I want to see real democratic change happening in South Africa in my age . . . I realised that change does not happen on its own. The only thing that happens on its own with regards to change is the change of seasons, tides and the different between night and day,” he said.

He added that all change, especially political changes, came with action.

"I've got a fire in my belly, a political fire in my belly, that is very difficult to ignore. It's been nagging me. I have always been asking myself if I had done enough. When Herman Mashaba approached me, I decided to put that nagging to bed,” he explained.

Mashaba said today signalled ActionSA's expansion into the Eastern Cape and the beginning of Project 2024 in a province that was desperate for something new.

He stated that the significance of this moment lay in its intent to build leadership in the nine provinces of the country that could activate the party’s structures ahead of the 2024 national and provincial election.

“After meeting our structures in the Eastern Cape yesterday, it is clear that our teams are rearing to go and are very pleased to work under Athol’s leadership,” he said.

Mashaba explained that much of what makes Trollip an asset to ActionSA and the project the party is embarking upon, cannot be contained in a resume. He said Trollip was a brave South African that you came to respect immediately when you met him. “He is principled and honest and one of those rare type of people in politics who says what he means and means what he says.”

He said in their discussions ahead of Trollip joining ActionSA, it was evident that he and Trollip shared a common appreciation of the duty that they had to serve South Africa in the task of removing the African National Congress in 2024.

Amnesty International South Africa launched its pit toilet tracker on Tuesday, while urging government to immediately fix the country’s poor education infrastructure.

The tracker will monitor the number of schools in the country that are still subjected to inadequate ablution and sanitation.

Amnesty International South Africa wants the Department of Basic Education (DBE) to urgently act on its commitment to replace all pit toilets in schools by 2023.

“These illegal pit toilets are not only violating the right to sanitation, which is enshrined in the Constitution, but also the right to health, education, dignity, privacy whilst in some cases posing a serious risk to the right to life,” said Amnesty International South Africa executive director Shenilla Mohamed.

Current government data indicates that South Africa still has 5 167 schools that do not have proper ablution facilities and that still use pit toilets.

However, Amnesty International SA argues that the data provided by the DBE regarding pit toilets in schools is not reliable.

According to a report released in September 2021 by the South African Human Rights Commission, over a million pupils and teachers are affected by the challenges of poor sanitation in schools.

In the Eastern Cape 44% of schools use pit toilets as their primary ablution facilities. A further 30% of schools in the province use ventilated improved pit toilets. In KwaZulu-Natal, 83% of schools are primarily reliant on pit toilets and ventilated improved pit toilets.

Mohamed said instead of meeting targets to eradicate pit toilets, the DBE has repeatedly revised deadlines, saying initially that it planned to eradicate pit toilets by March 2022, only to tell the Polokwane High Court last year that in provinces such as Limpopo this can only be achieved by 2030 – over ten years later than the original timeline.

“The government must eradicate all pit toilets in schools and ensure that all learners have access to safe and hygienic water and sanitation facilities. Authorities must fix the toilet crisis in South African schools to make sure that pupils learn in a safe environment, including making sure that there is hygienic water and sanitation to help them prevent diseases such as Covid-19,” she said.

Meanwhile, the organisation is also calling on people to continue signing a petition started in 2020 which already has more than 20 000 signatures demanding the DBE eradicate pit toilets in schools across South Africa.

Freedom Under Law (FUL) has expressed its confidence that President Cyril Ramaphosa will make his own choice for Chief Justice from the four candidates that were recently interviewed by the Judicial Service Commission (JSC).

Ramaphosa must select a successor to Mogoeng Mogoeng whose term of office ended in October 2021.

Last week, in what was an unprecedented announcement, the JSC recommended that Ramaphosa appoint Supreme Court of Appeal President Mandisa Maya as South Africa’s next Chief Justice.

Other candidates include Justice Mbuyiseli Madlanga, Deputy Chief Justice Raymond Zondo and Gauteng Judge President Dunstan Mlambo.

Legal experts hit back against the JSC after it endorsed Maya, saying it had no powers to do so.

FUL said the JSC’s performance last week has left its reputation in tatters.

“Nonetheless, we are confident that the President will not succumb to the contrived pressure and will make his own choice from among the four candidates – assured that each of them is eligible for the high office of Chief Justice,” said FUL’s Johann Kriegler.

The Constitution requires the President to consult the JSC when considering the appointment of the chief justice. However, the JSC has no power to recommend a nominee.

Kriegler said what was surprising was the “deft manipulation of the whole process”. He specifically referred to Economic Freedom Fighters leader Julius Malema and Advocate Dali Mpofu.

Last week FUL raised concerns with Malema and Mpofu’s participation in the interview process for the selection of the country’s next Chief Justice, urging them to step aside from the process as JSC members as they are subject to serious ethical charges.

FUL said the interviews seemed to discredit Zondo ahead of his interview.

“Warning lights flickered soon enough, when Justice Madlanga was asked, wholly irrelevantly to his own fitness for appointment, to comment on the propriety of his colleague Justice Zondo’s conduct in convening a media conference in response to a minister’s remarks about the judiciary – thus seeking to discredit Justice Zondo in advance of his own interview,” Kriegler stated.

He pointed out that “friendly and supportive” questions were addressed to Maya, while it seemed that Mlambo was “grilled so crudely” that the chairperson admonished Malema for his aggressive manner and tone.

“It became all the more plain that Justice Maya was the favoured candidate and two strong contenders had to be knocked out, or at least materially handicapped,” Kriegler said.