SONA debate: John Steenhuisen’s fiery lashing of Cyril’s SONA in quotes

The DA’s chief whip, John Steenhuisen, in his response to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s state of the nationa address (SONA 2019), handed down a lashing on the holes he found in the president’s leaking promises.

For the most part, opposition parties and many skeptics have shared a common view on Ramaphosa’s speech: “We have heard all of this before.”

Steenhuisen’s remarks on the key subjects Ramaphosa touched on shared the same sentiment. However, along with it, the DA’s chief whip had a warning or two for the president.

Read – Julius Malema tells Ramaphosa to fire “corrupt” Minister Mokonyane

These are the five key topics we drew out of Steenhuisen’s SONA debate speech.

SONA debate: John Steenhuisen and the Ramaphosa lashing

“Crime is a national crisis on a grand scale”

Steenhuisen kicked things off by unveiling the curtain Ramaphosa had seemingly placed over the true image of crime in South Africa.

The police-to-population ratio, Steenhuisen pointed, has not improved at all since the promise Ramaphosa had made at his SONA 2018 speech.

“The distribution of resources to police station level. This will include personnel and other resources, to restore capacity and experience at the level at which crime is most effectively combated,” Ramaphosa had said.

Read – SONA 2019: How Cyril’s speech “neutralised” Julius Malema and the EFF

Steenhuisen, however, noted that this was yet another empty promise made by the president, as the numbers show a grimmer reality.

This, according to the chief whip, was in large contrast to the amount of effort and money that is being put in to protect politicians.

“The reality however is that the police to population ratio actually
worsened to 1 police officer for every 375 citizens leaving communities even more vulnerable and unsafe… Whilst our communities are locked in the brutal grip of a violent crime wave sweeping our nation this government is spending 1.5 Billion Rand on VIP protection for politicians.

You cannot say you are serious about fighting crime and resourcing stations when you are misdirecting so much money and resources to protecting yourselves and keeping YOUR families safe while our citizens are being left to fend for themselves!” he said.

“Watch your back”

The opposition’s chief whip also warned Ramaphosa to look behind him at those who claim to have his best interests, and those of South Africa, at heart.

He warned Ramaphosa that, it may appear as if they – the opposition – are against him. However, the real enemies of the state and the head of it were those closest to him, he said.

“While you tell us to “watch this space”, our message to you is “watch your back”. Because the allies of growth and progress sit on these opposition benches, but your biggest obstacles sit on your own.

“There are people on that side of the House, who are willing you to fail. The ANC is corrupt to the core, and too many people in your party have got used to the Louis Vuitton handbags, the kickbacks and the “chickens”,” Steenhuisen added.

Read – SONA 2019: Five key points Cyril Ramaphosa touched on

“Another big tender, another opportunity to enrich a few cronies”

Responding to the president’s plan on enriching the skill sets and learning experience of students in the near future with the distribution of tablets in every home, Steenhuisen had a few bubbles to burst.

Let’s not forget that this is still a plan and has yet to be executed, he warned.

“Of course, those same people are rubbing their hands at the prospect of a tablet for every learner. Another big tender, another opportunity to enrich a few cronies,” he said.

“Deal decisively with the corrupt in your own party”

He also poked fun at the thought that every senior ANC official is in support of the relaunching of the Scorpions.

He reminded Ramaphosa that most of those that voted for the disbandment of the Scorpions 11 years ago are still in his Cabinet. Steenhuisen warned Ramaphosa to watch his back and be decisive in rooting out corruption in the ANC.

“ANC MPs don’t really want a new Scorpions; they voted to have the Scorpions disbanded in 2008 so that the looting could resume… And if it’s not the corrupt in your ranks who are going to stop you, it is the loony left in the tripartite alliance.

“It’s time to deal decisively with the corrupt in your own party.
You cannot really expect anybody to take what you said about combating corruption seriously while the most corrupt still sit in your party benches and around your cabinet table,” Steenhuisen said.

Read – Ramaphosa’s 2019 SONA speech: Fact checked

“Unless concomitant action is taken, you’ll never root out corruption”

Steenhuisen challenged Ramaphosa to hold true to his words on taking ‘concomitant’ action against the scourge of corruption in his Cabinet.

“Unless that concomitant action is taken, you will never root out corruption in this house, your cabinet or our country,” he said.

Steenhuisen’s speech, by all accounts, was a warning to Ramaphosa. Instead of worrying about the opposition posing a threat to his “Thuma Mina” dream, Steenhuisen warned the president to look much closer to his inner circle of ‘supporters’.

Watch: John Steenhuisen kills it with Parliamentary sweep speech

.@jsteenhuisen details how every single lofty plan that President Ramaphosa has for the future of South Africa will be stopped, not by the opposition, but by his own political party, and their alliance partners.#SONAdebate pic.twitter.com/VA2b3BIpD3

— Democratic Alliance (@Our_DA) February 12, 2019

That awkward moment when you go to the ANC website to try and find their policies…

"This site cannot be reached. https://t.co/ADJao0Y8Ug server address cannot be found."#SONAdebate pic.twitter.com/J4evEqcm1r

— Democratic Alliance (@Our_DA) February 12, 2019