President Cyril Ramaphosa will on Thursday evening deliver his eighth state of the nation address (Sona), which will also be his final one under the sixth administration.
Ramaphosa will for the first time since February 2018 deliver his Sona without the vocal opposition of the EFF.
The Western Cape High Court on Thursday morning dismissed an EFF application to set aside the suspension from parliament of leader Julius Malema, deputy leader Floyd Shivambu and others.
The party filed a motion challenging the decision by parliament to suspend them after they were found guilty of contempt of parliament for storming the stage while Ramaphosa was delivering his Sona in 2023.
Ramaphosa will deliver his address under new rules parliament, which prohibit raising points of order while the president is delivering his speech.
In previous Sonas, points of order have been used to delay and deter the sitting president from delivering their speech, sometimes leading to MPs being thrown out.
Thursday’s address takes place as SA celebrates 30 years of democracy, which is likely to feature prominently in Ramaphosa’s speech. He is also expected to outline what the country has achieved under the ANC.
Ramaphosa is expected to speak about social welfare, free housing, healthcare, details on the introduction of National Health Insurance (NHI) and the basic income grant.
He is also expected to highlight efforts to deal with corruption by agencies such as the Special Investigating Unit and the National Prosecuting Authority’s Investigative Directorate.
The address comes months before the national and provincial elections in which the ANC hopes to be re-elected.
Ramaphosa will deliver the Sona in the Cape Town City Hall.
TimesLIVE
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