OWN CORRESPONDENT, Cape Town | Friday
BATTERED on the domestic front, President Thabo Mbeki will today seek to win back lost ground when he delivers a state-of-the-nation address that is expected, among other things, to focus on South Africa’s rural poor.
The president is expected to unveil an integrated and sustainable rural development strategy, identifying major poverty-stricken areas for the first phase of the plan, to begin mid-year.
Mbeki is expected to again address questions of racism, returning to what one government representative has described as “issues that define us as a country and a people”.
The official opposition has made it clear it wants Mbeki to rise above racial divisions, and to move away from his “two nation” concept of South Africa.
It is expected the president will reflect on progress made since last year’s national conference on racism, organised by the SA Human Rights Commission, with an eye too on this year’s international conference on racism, to be hosted in South Africa.
On the socio-economic front, Mbeki will again report back on progress made, but will also identify further challenges in terms of housing, electricity and the provision of water.
Mbeki is expected to be upbeat about progress in the criminal justice system. However, those expecting Mbeki to announce an end to a moratorium on crime statistics will probably be disappointed.
On the economic front, Mbeki will again refer to South Africa’s macro-economic stability and the challenges of job creation and increased investment.
On foreign policy, the president is expected to home in on his Millennium African Renewal Programme, which he unveiled in Davos, Switzerland last month.
Mbeki’s address will be fleshed out further by his Cabinet ministers next week, during a briefing week for journalists and diplomats organised by the Government Communication and Information System (GCIS).
Democratic Alliance leader Tony Leon told reporters in Cape Town that a review of last year’s opening-of-parliament speech had revealed unfulfilled promises and misplaced priorities.
He listed a number of “crucial changes in tone, style and content” which Mbeki could use on Friday to reassure South African and foreign observers.
These included “addressing one nation, not two”; reaffirming respect for parliament, the press and for the constitutional principle of open, transparent and accountable government; and, lifting the moratorium on crime statistics.