President Cyril Ramaphosa has praised the Government of National Unity for inspiring confidence among investors and giving renewed hope to South Africans.
Ramaphosa gave a key note address at the ANC’s commemoration of a 100 days of the coalition government held at the party headquarters Luthuli House in Johannesburg where hundreds of supporters gathered for a large part of Monday.
Ramaphosa said the GNU had gained shape and was set to bring prosperity, particularly investment that’s needed in order for the economy to create jobs.
“Ordinary people and investors are now looking to South Africa as a good investment destination, we need to reindustrialize in order to create jobs. This is an area of hope and real progress that has been made since the elections,” said Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa said the ANC should be given credit for assembling ten parties to form the coalition instead of refusing to accept defeat.
“To its credit the ANC accepted the will of the people and went on to invite the other parties to form a government of national unity. We are told that in other countries this kind of outcome would have triggered violence as ruling parties seldom accept defeat but we humbled ourselves before our people,” he said.
Despite tensions that have played themselves in the public over what some in the ANC and the Tripartite Alliance, Ramaphosa insisted the coalition which includes right wing parties, the Democratic Alliance and Freedom Front + Ramaphosa insisted the GNU was “ widely accepted by our people inside and outside the ANC”.
The President even underplayed the unprecedented protest by alliance partners Cosatu and the South African Communist Party who boycotted the event and had consistently objected to the arrangement.
“ we greet in absentia, the leadership of our alliance partners Cosatu and the SACP,” he said continuing a spin started by Secretary General Fikile Mbalula who jokingly claimed the SACP could not attend as it was holding a meeting.
Gauteng Provincial chairperson Panyaza Lesufi was diplomatic in his welcome address careful not to offend the national leadership he thanked for “ forming the GNU”.
“ we thank the national leadership for representing us well in the negotiations and coming up with the GNU, we thank you so much President,” said Lesufi who’s supporters carried placards written “ don’t kill Chris Hani again” a message first seen on a T-shirt warn by Lesufi himself just days after the ANC entered into a deal with the right wing parties.
Ramaphosa said contrary to popular belief, the ANC has not been swallowed in the GNU.
“The #GNU is not starting from scratch, it is continuing with the work that was done by the African National Congress in the previous administrations,” he said.