Government

The State of the Nation Address has been postponed

Staff Writer

 ·6 Feb 2018

Parliament has confirmed that the State of the Nation Address (SONA), initially scheduled to be delivered by president Jacob Zuma on Thursday (8 February), has been postponed until further notice.

The news comes after several requests were made by political parties to have the date pushed back until there was political stability.

Speaker of the National Assembly, Baleka Mbete, flip-flopped on the matter, after denying opposition parties’ requests for postponement on Monday. She initially said she had no right to even consider the postponement – but has now signed off on exactly that.

Speaking ahead of a press briefing on Tuesday, Mbete said that the decision to postpone the SONA came after parliament learned that Zuma was writing to it to have the address pushed back.

“We are listening to political stakeholders and members of the public in making this decision. We are in continuing discussions with the President of the ANC as he is the leader of government business in parliament. We are also in contact with all political parties,” she said.

A future date for the SONA will be announced in due course, Mbete said.

Political parties want the SONA held back until after a motion of no confidence can be debated and held on 22nd of February.

Zuma’s time is running out

Following reported meetings between Zuma and the ANC’s top 6 officials – where the president refused a request to step down from his office – the ruling party has set in motion a political process with an uncertain outcome.

Specifically, a Monday meeting of the ANC’s national working committee agreed to set up a special sitting of the party’s national executive committee on Wednesday – what would have been the eve of the SONA.

The NEC is expected to discuss a way forward to see to the transition of power between Zuma and new ANC leader, Cyril Ramaphosa.

The working committee has reportedly backed a presidential recall, which would require the support of the NEC.

According to party insiders, Zuma has rejected the call to step down on the basis that he has not done anything wrong, and still enjoys support from the people of South Africa.

A new Ipsos poll found that almost three quarters of South Africans believe Zuma has not performed well as president of the country at all.

Read: Here’s what could happen to the rand if Zuma steps down before Thursday