Johannesburg - President Jacob Zuma’s State of the Nation address on Thursday may well go down as one that contributed to alienating minorities, the CDP said.
“Not only were minority issues not addressed and matters such as farm murders not even mentioned, but the polarisation of communities was conveniently overlooked,” said Christian Democratic Party leader Reverend Theunis Botha.
“South Africa is galloping in the wrong direction down important indexes such as the Corruption Perception Index, Freedom of the Press Index and the Failed State Index.
“One wonders if the president really grasps the seriousness of this matter. Only when these problems are fully realised, can they be addressed,” he said.
Botha said the address was, all-in-all “a very disappointing State of the Nation - if indeed it qualifies as such”.
He said the address offered a mixed bag of a lot of detail on certain issues, less on others and total silence on some critical ones.
“The figures mentioned on public spending, such as on infrastructure, sound impressive, but it is only what is to be expected of an economy the size of South Africa's.”
The CDP welcomed the investment in renewable, green energy, but would have liked to see a greater emphasis on the matter.
It was also glad to hear of steady growth in the tourism industry, despite crime and bad service delivery. However, South Africa had a lot of catching up to do with countries such as Mexico and other typical tourism destinations.
Botha said that while Zuma had spoken at length on combating corruption and on crime against women and children, he had been silent on the necessity for moral regeneration “without which none of this is possible”. - Sapa