CAROL PATON: Steering the nation along Mandela’s course
The political ground has shifted and Ramaphosa has an opportunity to restart the process of building a nation
On Friday, as Cyril Ramaphosa finished his first address as president of SA, the state of the nation was different. It was not only that the dignity and decorum of the event had been restored. Nor was it that, after many years of abuse, SA now had a president with the commitment to methodically plot out the priorities of an investor-friendly government. And although the atmosphere as people streamed out of the National Assembly was one of elation, it was more than the mood that had changed. The political ground had shifted; on the terrain on which political parties play, new opportunities had been born and old ones had vanished. Ramaphosa’s primary aim is to lead an economic recovery. We know this from his speech and from the pieces he has written prior to his election. His vision is the National Development Plan, within which he has elevated an apex priority: to deal with the crisis of youth unemployment destroying communities and which, if not remedied, will ultimately destroy SA....
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