Vincent Magwenya: Slow progress yes, but President Ramaphosa administration hasn’t failed

The office of the presidency says it’s not true that President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration has failed to implement key structural reforms since making several commitments at this year’s State of the Nation Address.

The president’s spokesperson Vincent Magwenya defended Ramaphosa following criticism from former president Thabo Mbeki earlier in the week.

Magwenya was responding to questions on the sidelines of bilateral engagements between South Africa and Ivory Coast on Friday.

Mbeki told mourners at an ANC memorial for the late deputy secretary general – Jessie Duarte that plans of a social compact to address joblessness, inequality, and poverty had not been realized in the 100-day timeframe set out by the Ramaphosa administration.

Mbeki’s comments were met by loud cheers from a packed hall at the Johannesburg city centre on Thursday.

South Africans now also face a rising cost of living – which sparked a warning from the former statesman who said the dire outlook could drive the country to implode.

While Magwenya admitted the implementation of some policy objectives is slow, he denied claims that there was no progress at all.

“There are a number of interventions that are currently underway around the stimulation of the economy, and you can look at them by sector or you can look at them more broadly but in essence, the government has not suspended its work on stimulating our economy simply because the social compact had not been completed.”

-EWN

In other news – Huge blow for viewers as actress Jessica Nkosi dumps The Queen

Actress Jessica Nkosi has bid goodbye to The Queen. Her character, Thando, appeared in the telenovela for the last time on Friday, 22 July, when she died in a shoot-out. Thando was a fan favourite because of her violent nature and loved guns.

Jessica took to social media to confirm that she was leaving the show, thanking Connie Ferguson and late Shona for giving her an opportunity to play Thando. Learn More