President Cyril Ramaphosa (RSA) addressed the Cape Town Press Club on February 15th 2024 as the country enters election year

The president had early dinner plans. Or so it seemed, when in a last-minute email, the Press Club informed its members and members of the media that the president would, in a South African first, be early. At 4pm on the dot, Cyril Ramaphosa and his entourage entered the ballroom of the Kelvin Grove Golf estate in the dignified Newlands suburb in Cape Town to address the Cape Town Press Club. Or maybe he just wanted to ‘get it over with’ – on par with his general tenor of cynical defensiveness during the conference. 

A few words about the importance of the media, free press, the need for “credibility,” the role it plays in a democratic society, and to freedom of speech – opening one’s “big mouth” in the face of injustice. That, it seems, is subject to moral relativism, but more on that later. Just as he had during his SONA speeches, President Ramaphosa pointed to the many achievements of the ANC during his last term: from leading Africa through the COVID pandemic, tackling issues from education to healthcare, and guiding the country into a greener future. He stressed, “We are now one of the leading countries in the roll-out of renewables.” When asked about an end to load shedding – the countries rolling black-out scheme that has been ongoing for years due to insufficient post-apartheid infrastructure, he noted that he was unable to “set a date.” All the while, a member of the ANC went on to diminish issues such as load shedding and the real-life impacts they have on the lives of South Africans. When asked about Sylvia Lucas’ statement that load shedding was not the “end of the world,” Ramaphosa answered with a casual: “I don’t think she meant it,” begging the question if, in his eyes, the words of the members of his government do not carry any weight and if, in turn, the careless downplay of load shedding does not eat away at the party’s credibility.

Election fatigue

2024 is shaping up to be a big year for democracy: South Africa is one of 64 countries around the world holding elections as does the European Union. A staggering 49% of the world’s population are heading to the polls this year. So far, Ramaphosa has not given a specific date for the elections that will see roughly 350 parties in the running. One of the opponents is former president Jacob Zuma who resigned from office in 2018 after facing corruption charges. His MK party has gained considerable traction in KwaZulu/Natal. However, by all accounts, Ramaphosa and his ANC party are not worried. They have played this game for long enough to know that their hot hand is not a fallacy. Should they be worried about players such as Zuma reentering the game? Undoubtedly. Instead, he let it be known with sullen cynicism that all his opponents are “hoping that they are going to win. Everyone hoping to replace me as president of South Africa,” and later added fatigued: “You shall see me back at [this] very position.” Like a lot of what Ramaphosa said, this, too, seemed to be lacking the usual oomph that is to be expected during election year. Even though or precisely because he knows defeat is unlikely, he sounded like a president defeated. His answers, while thoughtful and well-versed, were streaked with tired cynicism that evoked a sense of nervous annoyance after a long drive, as if to say: “are we there yet?” When asked if he wanted to run for president again, he said somewhat snappily: “I will do precisely that, if you don’t mind.” 

Big Mouths to Feed

The waiters served burger sliders with Ramaphosa boilerplate answers about the state of South Africa. Only on matters of foreign policy did his eyes glisten with a glimpse of political passion: When a member of the public declared her disappointment with the president and his government over the aftermath of the October 7^th Hamas attacks on Israel and subsequent harassment of the Jewish community in South Africa. “I have been very clear in condemning the actions taken against Israelis on October 7,” Ramaphosa said and added “I have spoken out – if you cared to pay attention to it – […] against any form of attack against South African Jews”. However, he noted, South Africa would not stand idly by in the face of genocide and apartheid. Although the International Court of Justice (ICJ) did not go as far as calling Israel’s actions a genocide, the ruling has widely been acclaimed as a victory for South Africa’s case. “Some people have accused us, and they have said that we have got a big mouth. And yes, we have a big mouth when it comes to issues of human rights,” Ramaphosa noted.

When asked about the clear inconsistency in foreign policy with regards to the Ukraine war and Russia’s “neocolonialism,” Ramaphosa reverted to his disengaged demeanor, brushing off any ulterior motives the question had implied. Right in the beginning of the conference, the president said: “The daily lives of many South Africans are in many ways still affected by poverty, by inequality as well as underdevelopment. These three elements were deliberately engineered.” As South Africa enters election year in celebration of 30 years of democracy and braces itself to host the G20 in 2025, the question remains how South Africa can overcome its own apartheid past of engineered inequality and whether South Africa can make use of its big mouth to tackle some of its domestic policy issues.

Photo: Madaxweyne Farmaajo oo u hambalyeeyay Madaxweynaha la doortay ee Koonfur Afrika by Villa Somalia. Copyright: PUBLIC DOMAIN MARK 1.0 UNIVERSAL.