The Sona show’s annual narcissistic performance ... and then?
If this country’s rights culture were as strong as its rites culture, we would be in much better shape. The rite that currently attracts the attention of political insiders is, of course, the annual state of the nation address (Sona) punch-up. This tells us more about the gap between the narcissistic insider politics we are fed daily and the real SA than about any of the issues it claims to highlight. This ritual is, by now, familiar. The EFF, which is far better at catching the eye of an admiring media than at winning voter support, stages its annual attention-getting event. While this is now directed at Jacob Zuma, it has developed such a momentum of its own that it will probably survive him. The DA, eager not to be upstaged, comes up with a protest of its own (it seems to put more effort into designing its contribution but, since this is not traditionally its game, it has to try harder). The ANC usually reacts by taking the bait: this year it tried to avoid this for quite a while...
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