Make this a good day to be South African

18 February 2020

Note to Editors: The following speech was delivered today during the State of the Nation Address debate.

Madam Speaker

Deputy President

Honorable President

Members of the house

The year is 2020, it is a new decade, a new year and still, South Africa remains in the grips of an economic crisis. A crisis of ethics in our government. A Parliament in crisis based on ideology trumping a culture of pragmatism and a crisis in safety as we as South Africans live in constant fear for our lives. Today Mr President, is not a good day to be South African.

Last Thursday I argued, point after point, for my right and the right of every South Africa to listen to the President’s SONA speech. I lived in hope that firm and decisive actions steps would be announced to relieve us from the continued crisis that we as South Africans face on a daily basis. Yet again, my hopes were shot down in a dramatic display of the inability of the governing party to put the needs of South Africa above the internal wrangling and division of a political party. I watched as Parliament was treated with contempt as those who do not have the ability to argue a debate attempted a coup of the evening by using Stalingrad tactics to bully their way into significance. It is not a good day to be South African.

As I sat in my chair, the irony was not lost on me that this was not the first time Judge Zondo had seen many member of Parliament. He has seen far too many “honourable” members in his commission, appearing for a variety of reasons, non of them earning the title “Honourable”. The irony was not lost on me that the President looked over to our benches and viewed us as the enemy, because we I sat, I had the bird’s eye view of every person who wishes the President harm, and it certainly was not us. I looked across at Members who are so resolute in the power that they yield within one party, they do not think twice about making outrageous statements on the steps of court, or join fellow members appearing on corruption charges to show their support. What we need to realise is that that this is not only a show for the benefit of the President, this is a blatant slap in the face of every South African who believes in justice and the rule of law. This is not a good day to be South African.

Madam Speaker, South Africans are so used to be slapped in the face, that I think as a nation, we have become completely punch drunk. If it wasn’t for our humour and our dogged determination to succeed, we would be in complete dire straits. While I think that it is really funny and genius in it’s creation, I don’t think that we as South Africans can be proud of the fact that a television advert teases of government using a game called Mzansipoli, where you can beat the game that’s been playing you. South Africans should feel like their government is playing them, but lets be honest, what else can they think. We now depend on Apps on our phone to tell us when the electricity will be on, and how can we forget when in December of 2019, the county had to hold its collective breath as we entered the unchartered territory of stage 6 black outs.

I read tweet after tweet, facebook post after facebook post, as South Africans used humour to lift their spirits. I noted how many postings of the lyrics to the song “The Sound of Silence” were posted. The song starts with the line “hello darkness my old friend”. And so of course, it was apt, and we all giggled, but the song goes on:

“And in the naked light I saw

Ten thousand people, maybe more

People talking without speaking

People hearing without listening

People writing songs that voices never share

And no one dared

Disturb the sound of silence”

It is not a good day to be South African.

But Madam Speaker, it can in fact be a very good day to be South African, and in the face of all the crisis I see, I am more determined than ever to make tomorrow and the day after that, and the day after that a good day to be South African. This is my home, my heart and my pride. I will live and strive for Freedom, I believe in South Africa, I believe in our future and I believe that our South African flame will guide us through this very dark period of our history. Mr President, I hope that you will use this South African flame to guide you and I hope, that you Sir, will break the Sound of Silence,

Issued by Natasha Mazzone,Chief Whip of the Official Opposition, 18 February 2020