President Cyril Ramaphosa.
(GovernmentZA)
The recently held State of the Nation Address (Sona) continued to be one of President Cyril Ramaphosa’s flagship PR initiatives, balancing self-praise with accountability.
The Sona is an interesting event because, whereas it seems like a generic tick-box exercise to most people, it is actually a powerful symbol of what the presidency considers of national importance and thus needs to be communicated to 60 million people. In other words, whatever Ramaphosa chooses to mention (or not mention) in his roughly half-hour monologue should serve as the definitive report on what the previous 12 months were for South Africa; however, this means South Africans have to wait a year to know what the government has been working on.
As one can imagine, the process of organising an event of this magnitude is no simple task. What is not mentioned in the R7 million price tag is the cost of coordinating the many speechwriters, policy advisers and senior officials required to write the speech itself. To reflect the state of the nation as accurately as possible, one would imagine that the government would consult as diverse a group of people as possible. While this cannot be argued, the information used to compile the speech is not democratised.
Ramaphosa’s address highlighted two possible scenarios plaguing government communications: essential updates and events within government are confined to the president’s office while ministerial and provincial offices are left in the dark, or government communications remain watertight, keeping important information that affects the public to itself.
The latter possibility is the most concerning, as citizens may be left unaware of essential matters that affect their daily lives. Existing government communication methods on platforms such as Facebook or X (previously Twitter) are failing critically in their missions.
Consider, for instance, the announcement that state-owned companies (SOCs) are being “recovered from the effects of state capture”, leading to “improved investor confidence”. This statement raises the question of which SOCs are being referred to, and why no one other than the president shares this view.
Why is the public not being made fully aware of these “recoveries” meant to ease pressure on the increasingly overburdened average person?
According to an X report by Decode, a PR and communications agency based in Johannesburg, the government does not engage in true dialogue, posting event photos and internal updates but rarely listening to exactly what followers want to know. This is corroborated by the lacklustre communications of these SOCs.
Take apart, for instance, the term “rising investor confidence”.
Which government players are responsible for this, and how have they communicated it to the public before the speech?
The Industrial Development Corporation (IDC), responsible for fostering the economic growth of South Africa’s key sectors, had nothing to say on X about any role it played in “improving” investor confidence; in fact, it continued posting about its CEO’s attendance at the recent Mining Indaba.
So, is it safe to say that the IDC and its constituents are not responsible for the “improving” economy?
Could it be the Transnet reforms? Transnet has never directly alluded to opening up to private-sector partnerships, contributing to “rising investor confidence”, so it cannot be Transnet either. Is the president suggesting that only Eskom, SARS and Transnet matter when determining economic stability?
If that is not the case, if the government has reason to believe multiple SOCs are truly recovering and improving the economic situation, where is this information sourced from, and why should the public wait until February to be informed when government X accounts report anything but improvements?
The Sona also announced “solutions” on issues such as surging illegal mining in communities in the West Rand and rampant gangsterism in the Cape Flats. The deployment of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) to these hotspots was applauded by many, but the justification and rollout of the deployment are incoherent upon closer examination.
While both the South African Police Service (SAPS) and the SANDF reposted a picture from the Sona touching on crime on X, neither communicated how pressing illegal mining and gangsterism are, nor explained how the army’s deployment will alleviate the situation. Again, the question becomes: what data or insights informed the president’s decision, and why are these insights kept private?
At this point, it seems the Sona is just an annual general meeting where some ministers receive praise while others are frowned at for a few minutes before the solutions tabled in the address dissipate as the public becomes distracted by the next major news story, such as the incoming budget speech.
The critical importance of communicating meaningfully with the public cannot be stressed enough, especially when South Africans are anxious to be kept in the loop as services such as water severely undermine the quality of life.
Speaking of the water crisis, Ramaphosa mentioned establishing a “National Water Resources Infrastructure Agency” to manage bulk water supply, but few people are aware of several catchment agencies nationwide, such as the Vaal River Catchment Agency, responsible for managing water resources in the area. The agency has little to no internet presence and no X profile, meaning the public cannot ask what the agency’s scope is and stay updated. This creates a situation where only top officials are privy to information regarding the management of an essential human right.
The department of water and sanitation, as well as the minister of water and sanitation, have no X profile and provide no clear leadership. Consider the recent fiasco caused by Panyaza Lesufi following his statement about bathing at a hotel due to water shortages. Lesufi does not spend enough time on the water and sanitation portfolio to provide accurate guidance; the department should be at the forefront, dispelling misunderstandings about the crisis and providing communicative support to affected residents. Instead, information is kept within office walls until it is time to write Ramaphosa a speech.
In the months to come, South Africans will eagerly await relief from the water, illegal mining and gangsterism responses the president laid out, but concerned SOCs and ministerial portfolios have the responsibility of keeping citizens informed throughout the year, not just in February 2027. Media releases and TV interviews will not suffice; government organisations that exist for public benefit must begin to speak and listen to the public to truly democractise the most powerful tool in a free country: knowledge.
Tisetso Tsukudu is a public relations and communication graduate interning at Decode, a pan-African communications agency based in Johannesburg. He is currently pursuing his advanced diploma in strategic communication.