A review of State of the Nation Address

Follow @B_K_chronicles

If you thought the vista on Parliament Street wasn’t as exquisite as you might have wanted it to be, then maybe the ethereal red carpet that stretched ceaselessly over the stone paving outside the gates of Parliament; cut off from the wriggling conflux of people who wanted to catch a glimpse of the President and his entourage, might have caught your eye. Even the music from the brass band was something; trumpeters, saxophonists and trombonists blessing the ambience with captivating sound that clothes you in army regalia and you suddenly feel part of the ‘squad’.

If I had time on my hand I would be more than willing to take you through the page-long list of all the dignitaries, guests of honour and all who had endorsed the assembly with their presence; award them the salutations that they deserve; just as the President had done. But I’m afraid I would have to start a new blog for that. So I will dive in to the essentials, and simply say, ‘All salutations are in order.’

It is certainly not easy to discount the fact that majority of South Africans were not entirely pleased with what was encased in the State of The Nation address at Parliament yesterday evening. Some of the issues raised are that it persists as a complete replica of the other oratories he has delivered in Parliament. ‘It doesn’t set a picture of where the country is headed,’ said one Political Analyst during an interview with SABC Anchors’ Vuyo Mvoko and Leanne Manas.

President Zuma certainly had an assortment on his plate, so much that he managed to throw in a joke or two during the address; to secure a meticulous snigger in the guests’ belly and a censorious grin on those who reside on the ‘Opposite Lane’. All this did not eliminate the finely tuned fact that what he was going through was merely what had been said before, albeit the twist in the structure and use of words. But, if English is a language you comprehend, it was like listening to a song being performed at the same venue but on a different date.

He noted the work that is being done to improve and strengthen ‘dialogue’ between ‘government’, ‘businesses’ and the ‘community sector’. He noted the need to construct and secure a “logistics corridor that will connect centres like Durban, Free State and Gauteng; which will see an improvement in our transport capacity with “our” seaports.” At this point his words are floating in front of me. I don’t know whether I should grab and digest or leave them floating until the next State of the Nation address, so that I can juxtapose the promises made with the work accomplished. Maybe we should have done it last year. But if you did, you probably have a vivid picture of what is and what is not. The address is forever colourful. It takes a sharp eye to separate the obsolete verbose words from valuable substance; which is what I believe is what every South African is looking for. 

In all this one should never ignore the progress that has been made, I think. As the President himself said, the problems that South Africa faces can never be solved in one go. It will take time and a lot of work, he said, to put all structures and efforts in place to see a better South Africa. He noted the progress made in terms of curbing unemployment. “Although jobs boomed from the year 2003, it did not fall below the 20% mark,” said President Jacob Zuma, switching the channel a few times to Zulu, his mother-tongue, and to Sesotho; displaying qualities of being a multilingual leader who embraces different languages and cultures in this ‘Rainbow Nation’.

He even took the opportunity to leaf through a few emails he had received from some distressed citizens who have found themselves deadlocked in the plight of acquiring decent housing and securing loans from financial institutions in the country, that can help them attain an improved standard of living. He confided to the audience and millions of viewers across the nation that so much is being done to make sure every South African can afford housing, including a R1 billion guarantee fund, started in 2010, that will promote access to loans and this fund will commence its operations in April this year, 2012.

 Well, the lyrics certainly haven’t changed. The song lingers as the same one we have known through these few years, and the tune remains forever mellow. Time is what everyone needs, and those who try and make an effort can never be deprived a second chance to set things right, can they? What remains is a question of how long? How long does one need to make it right? As much as we can never ignore the drastic changes that the President and ‘his’ government have done to structures and government apparatus that were now redundant or highly decorated with corruption, let there be a way forward after all the changes have been made. The tree is certainly sprouting, and it is becoming greener by the day, yet its fruit remains incarcerated in its belly. When will it pop out and fall to the ground, such that all those who survive on this soil may be nourished by it.

Till next time, stay safe and share the love with the rest of the world!