SONA: Ramaphosa expected to face stiff criticism over combatting corruption

CAPE TOWN - President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to come in for stiff criticism of his efforts to combat corruption over the last five years when he delivers the State of the Nation Address (SONA) on Thursday.

Over the last five years, Ramaphosa has consistently made promises to get a grip on the corruption that flourished during the presidency of his predecessor.
 
But since being embroiled in a corruption scandal of his own related to the theft of US Dollars from his Phala Phala farm four years ago, political analysts believe this will make it even more difficult for him to convince his detractors that his administration has done better in rooting out the rot.

With President Cyril Ramaphosa having failed to take any action against politicians who have been cited by the Zondo commission of inquiry into state capture - political analysts say it will be tricky for the president to convince South Africans that he has made progress on the anti-corruption front.

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Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Non-Racialism and Democracy Professor Bheki Mngomezulu.

"There might have been political will to do the right thing, but when it came to implementation this has not been the case. So, in other words, the president might have good intentions when he said we are going to fight corruption."

University of Pretoria political analyst Heather Thuynsma agrees: "We’ve seen whistleblowers silenced and there’s Phala Phala incident which puts a damper on any actions he’s tried to take to counter corruption."

Thuynsma said while the National Prosecuting Authority and the Special Investigating Unit have made strides in recouping some of the stolen money – it won’t be enough to convince South Africans that corruption is being adequately dealt with.