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Many South Africans are expected to be glued to their screens this evening, 18 July 2024,\u00a0 as they eagerly wait to hear from President Cyril Ramaphosa, when he delivers the Opening of Parliament Address (OPA) at 7pm.<\/p>\n
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As South Africa struggles with rising fuel and food prices, youth unemployment, crime and corruption, amongst others, many citizens are seeking hope and will be looking to President Ramaphosa\u2019s speech for much-needed optimism as he leads the country under the Government of National Unity (GNU) banner.<\/p>\n
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President Ramaphosa was re-elected for a second term last month at the first sitting of the National Assembly since the highly contested elections of 29 May.<\/p>\n
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He received 283 votes, while the leader of the Economic Freedom Fighters, Julius Malema, received 44 votes for the top job.<\/p>\n
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The Speaker of Parliament, Thoko Didiza, has described the OPA ceremony as a historic event and said that the opening of Parliament reaffirms the government\u2019s commitment to constitutional democracy.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt serves as a powerful symbol for our nation\u2019s ability to overcome adversity and continue the important work of governance,\u201d Didiza said at a media briefing on Thursday to outline Parliament’s state of readiness for the big event today, expected to showcase all the colourful and elegantly put together ceremonial aspects, befitting the Opening of Parliament.<\/p>\n
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Key areas<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Speaking to SAnews, University of South Africa (Unisa) political analyst, Professor Dirk Kotze, said he expected the President’s speech to focus on the economy.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cThe issues he emphasised in the past will continue; the economic recovery plan, I suspect will still be the basis of his focus and [the] employment matter – how to create employment.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kotze also believes that the President will address infrastructure matters, foreign investments, and issues regarding electricity and water.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI think the matter that is an overarching issue is how to deal with the fiscal issue and how there\u2019s a reduction of the budgets in all of the different departments and how to try to improve the fiscal situation as a whole,\u201d he told SAnews.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n According to Kotze, the President\u2019s speech usually covers almost all the departments, and that people can expect the same from the OPA.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n He will also reaffirm the government’s commitment to the fundamental principles of multilateralism, non-partisanship, and democracy, said the analyst.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cHe should also create an environment which will make the GNU attractive for South Africans and the international community. I don\u2019t know how exactly he\u2019s going to do it, but he will have to build trust in the new government.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Kotze also suspects that President Ramaphosa will address the GNU, discussing what they have already agreed upon, how it should function, and how Cabinet should operate.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cI think that will be the important part of the speech,\u201d he explained.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The road to OPA<\/strong><\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Opening of Parliament signifies the formal start of the parliamentary year and is usually marked by grandeur, ceremony, and glamorous fashion that sparks conversation.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n However, it is more than just that; but a significant ceremony where the Head of State outlines the government\u2019s agenda, priorities, and policies during a joint sitting of the newly constituted two Houses of Parliament to deliver the OPA of the seventh administration.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The OPA occurs once every five years, following the Provincial and National Elections. It outlines the new administration\u2019s plans and the official opening of the new five-year term of Parliament.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The President presided over the first Cabinet lekgotla of the administration at Sefako Makgatho Presidential Guest House in Pretoria over the weekend, where Ministers, Deputy Ministers, and Premiers gathered to discuss the government\u2019s agenda.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The OPA will also provide an opportunity to hear the direction government is taking under the GNU.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n According to Parliament, the address serves as a unifying force for the whole nation to collaborate and continue the progress made by past governments.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u201cIt draws us in a common front to find ways to address the challenges we face and improve the lives of people.\u201d<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Mandela Day<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n This year\u2019s opening of Parliament coincides with the United Nations-declared Nelson Mandela International Day.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n July 18 marks the birthday of the founding President of a democratic South Africa and is a global celebration. It is a day for personal and collective actions for good that honour the leader\u2019s life and legacy.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The Presidency has since called on citizens and communities to take time to reflect on Mandela\u2019s values and principles and to make a positive impact on communities globally.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n The OPA will take place at the Cape Town City Hall.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n South Africans can tune into their favourite television or radio station to be part of this national milestone.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Proceedings will also be covered via government and Parliament social media accounts.\u00a0 \u2013 SAnews.gov.za<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Many South Africans are expected to be glued to their screens this evening,<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":456,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-611","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-government"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/611","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=611"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/611\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":614,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/611\/revisions\/614"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/456"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=611"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=611"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/pixleyindependent.co.za\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=611"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}