All eyes and expectations are on President Cyril Ramaphosa as he prepares to deliver the State of the Nation Address on Thursday evening.
Storm Simpson/News24
All eyes and expectations are on President Cyril Ramaphosa as he prepares to deliver the State of the Nation Address on Thursday evening.Political parties have set out their expectations,with the water issue being at the fore for the DA,GOOD,Rise Mzansi and BOSA. The EFF says,“for once”,Ramaphosa must table a jobs plan,while Standing Committee on Public Accounts chair Songezo Zibi believes the most important issue is crime prevention.Municipalities are collapsing and they can’t continue to be a footnote in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s State of the Nation Address (SONA).
This was the prevailing message from political parties ahead of Ramaphosa’s speech on Thursday evening.
The water and electricity problems,which squarely lie with local government,were brought to the fore by residents in Johannesburg,as well as politicians,ahead of Ramaphosa’s policy speech.
It comes at a time when water tankers delivering water to parched eThekwini residents have become a common sight,as Nelson Mandela Bay and Johannesburg residents,and beyond,also go many hours without water.
ADVERTISEMENT
The water outages in the metro come against the backdrop of rural residents in some areas of the Eastern Cape,Limpopo and KwaZulu-Natal not having had access to clean,running water for years.
Rise Mzansi leader Songezo Zibi told News24 that he had personally informed Ramaphosa that “people are not agitated,they’re angry and scared” in relation to water outages and crime.
READ | Out of touch: Opposition rejects Lesufi’s apology,ANC backs him amid Gauteng water crisis
DA spokespersons Karabo Khakhau and Jan de Villiers called for the ring-fencing of power and water revenue,in local governments,so that water and electricity payments by residents fund water and electricity infrastructure,“instead of those payments cross-subsidising wasteful spending,leaving water pipes to fail and power lines to collapse”.
ADVERTISEMENT
In a joint statement,RISE Mzansi,GOOD and BOSA said: “Mr President,municipalities are collapsing,they cannot be a footnote in your speech and work.”
“Every South African calls a municipality home; every business relies on functioning local governments to earn a profit.”
The parties added:
Service delivery and the functioning of local government are critical to human dignity and economic growth; yet,too many of the 257 municipalities are in a state of collapse or have already collapsed.
The three parties,in a statement issued under their Unite for Change umbrella,dared Ramaphosa to underscore,in his SONA,the importance of local government in the functioning of the state,the adherence to human rights,and the support of economic activity.
“Municipalities are the closest sphere of government to the people,and Unite for Change argues that it is the most important sphere of government.”
Unite for Change recommended,among other things:
The introduction of a coordinated water security plan to curb almost 50% of potable water from being wasted due to crumbling infrastructure;Capacitating municipalities to keep people and property safe by implementing better coordination between the SAPS and local law enforcement; andArresting dysfunction and debt as there are more than 100 municipalities operating on unfunded budgets,and owe creditors – particularly Eskom and water boards – exorbitant amounts,which creates a cycle of dysfunction where municipal funds are spent on paying debts rather than advancing service delivery.
“Moreover,the Investigating Directorate Against Corruption [IDAC] and the Hawks must act swiftly in removing the rot of corruption from local government,” the parties said.
Meanwhile,on other policy issues,the DA’s Khakhau and De Villiers called for several reforms,and mostly privatisation,that the party expects “because they are desperately needed for our economy to grow”.
These include the “review and replacement” of BEE,as foreign investors don’t invest in South Africa when they have to give up part of their ownership.
READ | SONA 2026: Ramaphosa strikes cautious optimism,admits ‘huge problems’ remain
The DA called for the unlocking of ports and rail,with immediate effect,to private operator concessions,not just private users.
Khakhau and De Villiers called for the end of Transnet’s monopoly for “ruining our rail network”; the eradication of the cadre deployment policy; and for the devolution of policing powers,so that competent governments can run local policing competently.
Among other things,the DA called for the end to the culture of waste across government,the privatisation of parts of Eskom’s grid,which the party feels Minister Kgosientso Ramokgopa has backtracked on.
ADVERTISEMENT
Khakhau and De Villiers said the party remained committed to the GNU in order to fight corruption.
A NATION THAT WORKS FOR ALL
🇿🇦 President @CyrilRamaphosa delivers his 2026 State of the Nation Address to the Joint Sitting of the National Assembly and the National Council of Provinces at the Cape Town City Hall on 12 February 2026 at 7PM. #SONA2026#AWorkingNation pic.twitter.com/QtST3fk2QU
— The Presidency 🇿🇦 (@PresidencyZA) February 5,2026
“This will be at the root of job creation. For once,the president ought to have a jobs plan and prioritise spending that will turn the tide on high unemployment.”
“One of the things I told him [Ramaphosa] last year is that people want to see you hanging someone on a lamp post.”
Ramaphosa only suspended his political ally,Senzo Mchunu,as a police minister due to the establishment of the commission.
He still draws a ministerial salary.
“It’s important that you exert accountability that South Africans can see,” Zibi said.
READ | Fix the taps,not just talk: Why Ramaphosa’s SONA must prioritise local govt
ActionSA parliamentary leader Athol Trollip said South Africans didn’t want to hear any more promises “while Tintswalo is unemployed,please”.
Tintswalo was an analogy used by Ramaphosa during the 2024 SONA as he recalled the government’s successes amid a barrage of criticism of government failures.
Trollip said the government failures are continuous,and he doesn’t want to hear any more promises about bullet trains and smart cities,which Ramaphosa made over several policy speeches but have yet to see the light of day.
Trollip said: “Cancel this whole SONA pageantry,have a family meeting,sit in a TV studio in Johannesburg and broadcast to the country what they’ve done and what they will do; that’s what he should be doing.
ADVERTISEMENT
“I promise I’ll try to stay away so I can listen to all his promises.”
United News - unews.co.za