Press statement
16 February 2018
Action must follow a great speech
The Ahmed Kathrada Foundation welcomes the general tone and content of
President Ramaphosa’s maiden State of the Nation Address (SONA).
“Earlier this month, the Foundation, as part of the Future South Africa coalition,
called on Mr Ramaphosa to ensure that this year’s SONA address restores the
‘dignity and decorum of the House’. We believe that he has delivered on this,”
said the Foundation’s Executive Director, Neeshan Balton.
“It has been a refreshing change to have a SONA without walkouts, without
security personnel removing members, without signal jamming and most
importantly, without a president whose words, especially about tackling
corruption, rang hollow,” he said.
Balton praised President Ramaphosa’s commitment to “ethical behaviour and
ethical leadership”. “This must be followed up with decisive action at all tiers of
government against officials, politicians, business people, individuals and
families who are corrupt and embroiled in the state capture project.
“The Zondo commission of inquiry into state capture provides the starting point
in revealing the details about the establishment of the ‘shadow state’. At the
same time, we acknowledge the President’s reassurance that law enforcement
agencies will continue their work simultaneously. In this regard the Kathrada
Foundation is elated that action against the Gupta syndicate has commenced
and we hope to see Ajay Gupta and others in Court and hopefully in jail shortly
thereafter.
“We welcome the President’s emphasis on the fact that law enforcement
agencies should be free from outside interference and should pursue those
implicated in corruption without fear or favour,” he stated.
Balton added that the Foundation particularly commended the President on his
intent to establish a commission that will restore the credibility of SARS.
“After ten years of ‘misgovernance’ under the Jacob Zuma administration, the
country currently faces crippling poverty, unemployment and inequality, an
upsurge in racial and ethnic tensions, entrenched patriarchy, crime, disfunctional
state owned entities, problems in the healthcare and education sector, a water
crisis and poor service delivery. These issues were raised by the President in the
SONA and require urgent attention,” Balton said.
“We are mindful though, that dealing with the myriad challenges is not an
overnight process. Destroying institutions is quick and easy, but rebuilding takes
a long time. However, we believe with the appointment of competent and ethical
individuals at the helm of key ministries and SOE’s, there can be a turnaround.
We would therefore urge President Ramaphosa to ensure that skilled and honest
people are part of his Cabinet and that those who are ineffective or implicated in
state capture are axed and brought to book.

 “We acknowledge President Ramaphosa’s commitment to improving the public
service and government administration, but note this requires programmes that
enable civil servants to refuse to comply with orders from any of their superiors
which are illegal, unconstitutional or unethical,” he said. “Had this been in place,
we would not have had the Life Esidemeni saga.”
President Ramaphosa was the first chairperson of the Ahmed Kathrada
Foundation Board, which he served on from 2008 to 2014. “We are confident,
that having been part of the Foundation, which aims to build a truly non-racial
society, President Ramaphosa’s work will be guided by this principle in a
fundamental way. His speech today highlighted that systematic racial inequality
still exists and must be tackled, and that transformation be prioritised. He also
emphasised the need to unite South Africans across all barriers around a
common vision and build a sense of nationhood, while at the same time
celebrating our diversity,” Balton said.
“President Ramaphosa’s appointment could come to symbolise government’s
commitment to reversing the damage done under the Zuma years if the actions
required to stamp out the erosion of good governance are taken with speed. The
mood of optimism must not be allowed to dim again.
“We applaud President Ramaphosa for setting out a vision for change and
renewal, and we wish him the courage, tenacity and decisiveness to take the
decisions needed to move the country forward.”

Issued on behalf of the Ahmed Kathrada Foundation
For media enquiries contact:
Zaakirah Vadi
Communications Officer
076 243 1185
media@kathradafoundation.org
@KathradaFound