IN CONVERSATION WITH VUTOMI MTANA, CHAIRPERSON OF GREATER TZANEN
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As South Africa approaches the 2026 State of the Nation Address (SONA),
United Africans Transformation (UAT) expects President Cyril Ramaphosa to
move decisively beyond repetition, symbolism, and recycled commitments. This
SONA must present clear, time-bound undertakings that signal a genuine break
from the governance failures that continue to burden the country.
South Africans are facing a deepening national crisis marked by weak economic
growth, persistently high unemployment, particularly among the youth, rising
violent crime, deteriorating public services, and a growing disconnect between
political leadership and the lived realities of ordinary citizens. The 2026 SONA
must therefore be a moment of accountability and direction, not another
exercise in reassurance without delivery.
Most critically, it has been far too long that the President presents plans
without providing a full and transparent report on what the State has actually
delivered since assuming office. South Africans are entitled to a clear account of
performance, not promises. UAT expects the President to present the real state
of affairs in South Africa, including what tangible progress has been achieved
during the current term of government, where failures persist, and why.
UAT further expects President Ramaphosa to confront, without ambiguity, the
consequences of the extensive loans acquired from domestic state institutions
and international lenders. The President must justify how this growing public
debt has translated into real and lasting value for the nation. Beyond rhetoric
and emergency interventions, South Africans require concrete evidence that
borrowed funds have driven sustainable economic growth, rebuilt state
capacity, and moved the country away from a cycle of dependency and
stagnation.
On economic reform, UAT calls for the announcement of concrete and
measurable interventions that prioritise productive investment, local
industrialisation, and small business development. Credible commitments must
be made to reduce the cost of doing business, accelerate infrastructure
delivery, and decisively resolve energy instability, which remains a binding
constraint on economic growth. The continued escalation of electricity costs is
deepening poverty and hunger across the country, and urgent action is required
to provide relief to households and businesses.
Unemployment cannot continue to be addressed through short-term public
employment schemes alone. UAT expects bold labour-market reforms, skills
development programmes aligned to real economic demand, and targeted
support for township and rural enterprises capable of generating sustainable
and dignified work opportunities.
South Africa’s deepening inequality cannot be meaningfully addressed without
confronting the persistent lack of land access and the continued failure of land
restitution. Decades after democracy, millions of black South Africans remain
landless and excluded from productive land, secure housing, and participation
in agriculture and spatial economic development. Land reform processes
remain slow, fragmented, underfunded, and vulnerable to elite capture,
undermining both justice and economic growth.
UAT expects the President to move beyond policy rhetoric and outline clear,
time-bound interventions to accelerate land restitution and redistribution. This
must include restoring dignity to dispossessed communities, unlocking land for
productive use, and ensuring that land reform contributes directly to job
creation, food security, rural development, and inclusive economic
participation. Land reform must serve the people—not politically connected
elites—and must be anchored in transparency, accountability, and sustainable
use that corrects historical injustice while building future prosperity.
The state of institutions of higher learning must also be addressed with honesty
and detail. UAT expects a clear account of the capacity of universities and
colleges, including the number of students
United Africans Transformation (UAT) expects President Cyril Ramaphosa to
move decisively beyond repetition, symbolism, and recycled commitments. This
SONA must present clear, time-bound undertakings that signal a genuine break
from the governance failures that continue to burden the country.
South Africans are facing a deepening national crisis marked by weak economic
growth, persistently high unemployment, particularly among the youth, rising
violent crime, deteriorating public services, and a growing disconnect between
political leadership and the lived realities of ordinary citizens. The 2026 SONA
must therefore be a moment of accountability and direction, not another
exercise in reassurance without delivery.
Most critically, it has been far too long that the President presents plans
without providing a full and transparent report on what the State has actually
delivered since assuming office. South Africans are entitled to a clear account of
performance, not promises. UAT expects the President to present the real state
of affairs in South Africa, including what tangible progress has been achieved
during the current term of government, where failures persist, and why.
UAT further expects President Ramaphosa to confront, without ambiguity, the
consequences of the extensive loans acquired from domestic state institutions
and international lenders. The President must justify how this growing public
debt has translated into real and lasting value for the nation. Beyond rhetoric
and emergency interventions, South Africans require concrete evidence that
borrowed funds have driven sustainable economic growth, rebuilt state
capacity, and moved the country away from a cycle of dependency and
stagnation.
On economic reform, UAT calls for the announcement of concrete and
measurable interventions that prioritise productive investment, local
industrialisation, and small business development. Credible commitments must
be made to reduce the cost of doing business, accelerate infrastructure
delivery, and decisively resolve energy instability, which remains a binding
constraint on economic growth. The continued escalation of electricity costs is
deepening poverty and hunger across the country, and urgent action is required
to provide relief to households and businesses.
Unemployment cannot continue to be addressed through short-term public
employment schemes alone. UAT expects bold labour-market reforms, skills
development programmes aligned to real economic demand, and targeted
support for township and rural enterprises capable of generating sustainable
and dignified work opportunities.
South Africa’s deepening inequality cannot be meaningfully addressed without
confronting the persistent lack of land access and the continued failure of land
restitution. Decades after democracy, millions of black South Africans remain
landless and excluded from productive land, secure housing, and participation
in agriculture and spatial economic development. Land reform processes
remain slow, fragmented, underfunded, and vulnerable to elite capture,
undermining both justice and economic growth.
UAT expects the President to move beyond policy rhetoric and outline clear,
time-bound interventions to accelerate land restitution and redistribution. This
must include restoring dignity to dispossessed communities, unlocking land for
productive use, and ensuring that land reform contributes directly to job
creation, food security, rural development, and inclusive economic
participation. Land reform must serve the people—not politically connected
elites—and must be anchored in transparency, accountability, and sustainable
use that corrects historical injustice while building future prosperity.
The state of institutions of higher learning must also be addressed with honesty
and detail. UAT expects a clear account of the capacity of universities and
colleges, including the number of students
