THEBE MABANGA
PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa has pinned his hope of an economic recovery on what some might call misplaced optimism, questionable targets and plans that have thus far proven inadequate.
Presenting the State of the Nation Address (SONA) in parliament in Cape Town on Thursday, Ramaphosa prioritized the acceleration of economic recovery and implementation of reforms, alongside defeating the COVID-19 pandemic and fighting corruption.
The president sees economic recovery as a task that is as defeating the pandemic.
“We must overcome poverty and hunger, joblessness and inequality,” said Ramaphosa.
Poverty is on the rise. Inequality is deepening, he said without quoting any statistics.
Ramaphosa noted that in the third quarter of 2020, the economy shrank by 6% from a year earlier and there were 1.7 million fewer people employed in the third quarter of 2020 than there were in the first quarter, before COVID struck.
The president then expressed an
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