‘We were very disappointed’

Political reactions on Friday streamed in to President Thabo Mbeki’s opening of Parliament and State of the Nation speech in Cape Town.

Tony Leon, leader of the official opposition Democratic Alliance, said: ”The president said that all is well, and that it would be more of the same, with no changes in policies, which we would say is a very defensive posture. He did not address the real failures of crime, unemployment and HIV/Aids, which are the three key areas where we believe a change of course is necessary.

”Also, there was complete silence on Zimbabwe, which is a failure of leadership that is starting to define our commitment to democratic principles.”

Patricia de Lille of the Independent Democrats said: ”I’m glad he reminded us of the vision of Nelson Mandela, but he failed to show a vision of the future. It was also shocking that only one reference to HIV/Aids was made, yet there were three references to Vodacom.”

The leader of the United Democratic Movement, Bantu Holomisa, said: ”There was nothing new in what he said. This was the problem — when he said there would be no changes in the policies of 1994, implying that we will still witness such words as downsizing, retrenchments and unemployment. He failed dismally in address the issue of unemployment.”

Dr Peter Mulder of the Freedom Front remarked: ”I am very disappointed in that problems are getting bigger with unemployment and crime getting worse and he didn’t mention this. Mostly the speech was about the past, not the future. Also he acted as if Zimbabwe didn’t exist. There was not enough on crime, either.”

According to Cassie Aucamp of the National Action party, ”It was really a ‘State of the Company’ speech — nothing exciting or new. But I must say that he didn’t use the speech for electioneering.”

Reverend Kenneth Meshoe of the African Christian Democratic Party said: ”We were very disappointed. The speech was not motivating. The fact that he quoted [former] president [Nelson] Mandela about 16 times shows he has run out of ideas. He highlighted the successes such as drinking water and providing houses, but he did not tell us the solutions for the problems of crime. South Africans are looking for solutions.

”He did not say anything about HIV/Aids. We have thousands of our people dying. He did not tell us when [the government] would be rolling out anti-retrovirals.”

Azanian People’s Organisation spokesperson Pardelani Nefolabane said: ”It was just a summary of what has happened over the past 10 years and that there will be no policy changes. But we want policy changes on health and drastic changes in response to housing — we can’t continue to live in houses that aren’t habitable.”

Cyril Ramaphosa, chairperson of Johnnic and former chairperson of the constitutional assembly, remarked: ”For me to be here after 10 years of democracy is exhilarating. I made it a point to come and celebrate. I used to be a member [of Parliament] and it is wonderful to be here. The speech was well-balanced and gave good context of where we have come from, what we have achieved and a window of where we are going to in the next 10 years, the challenges that lie ahead.

”He was saying we have built a good platform to be able to tackle the challenges that lie ahead. He referred to Nelson Mandela’s era and set the scene in terms of policy and commitment and he has been building on that. He gave a well-balanced speech.

When asked if he wanted to return to Parliament, Ramaphosa said: ”I miss the people. But we all have to work in different terrains and I am enjoying that.”

Former president FW de Klerk, the former leader of the apartheid National Party whose February 2 1990 speech led to democracy, said: ”I think it was a very dignified speech. I welcome the fact that the president concentrated on the milestones in our history and absolutely refrained from petty politics.”

De Klerk’s wife, Elita, said: ”It was a rejoicing occasion. It was wonderful to be all together and seeing what we can do for the future.”

Raymond Parsons, a business coordinator for Nedlac, remarked: ”I think it was an important survey of where we are now, where the country is now, what we have achieved over the past 10 years. It was not a controversial speech. It was really a State of Nation address.

Asked if he had said enough about poverty, Parsons said: ”This was stated in his speech. That will be a high priority for government.” — I-Net Bridge