GNU

Without pragmatic discussion followed by decisive action to address colour-coded inequality, South Africa risks being led by a Robert Mugabe. If we don’t prioritise narrowing inequality and accelerate fixing social and economic exclusions and injustices inherited from our divided history, economic growth and social stability will remain pipe dreams. What is required is an introspective conversation about the nation’s soul, that does not lend itself to the populist and/or divisive rhetoric of election campaigns. It is in this spirit that the GOOD Party agreed to participate in the National Dialogue.

The State must send an unequivocal message to the xenophobes blocking access by foreign nationals to health care facilities in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal that people engaging in vigilantism will be arrested and prosecuted.

South Africans have every right to demand that the State uses the country’s immigration laws to control the inflow of foreign nationals, and every right to demand a government that radically improves the delivery of services and dignity to desperately struggling citizens. But they have no right to take the law into their own hands.

Today marks one year since the Government of National Unity was formed, a bold and necessary step towards restoring stability and collaboration in a fractured political landscape. For the first time, the official opposition, most notably the DA, has found itself not across the aisle, but at the table. This has placed them in uncharted waters, balancing critique with cooperation. It is a tightrope that GOOD has walked before. When our leader, Patricia de Lille, entered Cabinet in 2019.

President Ramaphosa’s announcement of a National Convention on 15 August to launch a National Dialogue is a long-overdue step toward renewing South Africa’s social contract. Nearly a year has passed since political parties signed the Statement of Intent of the Government of National Unity (GNU), which explicitly committed to convening a National Dialogue to tackle the country’s deep and urgent challenges. That commitment was made in good faith and in recognition of the need for collective action in the face of crisis. The delay in giving effect to this promise has been frustrating, but the time for talking has finally arrived, and it must now be time for action too.