PETER BRUCE: Ramaphosa knows exactly how incapable his state really is
At the best of times SA is not an easy place to govern, but there are so many easy fixes if we could only learn to value the expertise and commitment we have
Depending on where you stand, either President’s Cyril Ramaphosa’s address to the nation on Sunday night was assertive, empathetic, gracious and generous; or he is a cynical, two-faced snake and a liar. As Boris Johnson’s landslide victory in the UK election last year taught us, never confuse Twitter with your country.
The coronavirus and nine-week lockdown (sprung on us at almost no notice) have us all strung out, but I couldn’t help reminding myself after he had finished that he is basically a decent man in an impossible position. What he did on Sunday night was go about as far out on a limb as I’ve seen him go. If we misbehave from June 1, when we can move around freely, fly a bit, replenish the whisky cupboard and drive around at night, we will only have ourselves to blame if the infection begins to spread even more quickly than it is...
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