Much has been written over the past week over the need to fire and replace some members of President Ramaphosa’s cabinet who have shown themselves to be woefully inept at their designated portfolios in the wake of the rioting, looting and insurrection that gripped the nation and ravaged large parts of KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.
The consensus among the country’s opinion scribes is that the cabinet is in desperate need of a reshuffle and perhaps some trimming of the fat as the issue around the size of the cabinet crops up once more.
Director of operations at the Mapungubwe Institution, Abba Omar, shares the sentiment and writes that “As a nation we should send in suggestions for Cyril’s Cabinet, keeping in mind that there are many capable MPs he could choose from,” in the Business Day. (For subscribers)
But Ralph Mathekga disagrees with an immediate cabinet reshuffle in his piece published on News24. Mathekga asserts that if the president were to reshuffle the cabinet now it could weaken his hand in the long-run and potentially isolate himself within the ANC as the factional battle rages on. “A summary removal of all ministers in the security cluster, or even removing two ministers at a go, may send tremors across the party, leaving Ramaphosa even more isolated in his anti-corruption crusade that is already raising flags in the ANC.” (For subscribers)
And as we start to get into the Olympic spirit with our first two medals won this morning by swimmer Tatjana Schoenmaker who took home silver in the women’s 100m breaststroke final and surfer Bianca Buitendag who also won a silver medal in the women’s shortboard competition, Sarah Buitendach writes a delightful piece on her observations of the sporting “jamboree” in the Financial Mail.
Here’s a roundup of today’s most interesting opinions and analyses:
- Pandemic offers golden opportunity for intra-African trade – Sarmad Lone, Business Day
- Cover-up? Gauteng government retreats from financial transparency – Mark Heywood, Daily Maverick
- Brave for Leon Wessels to speak frankly about ‘ghosts of apartheid’ – Editorial, The Citizen (For subscribers)
- ‘My sister is mistaken’ and other responses to dissent in Zuma contempt case – Dan Mafor, Mail & Guardian
- BEE isn’t working, so scrap it – John Endres, Daily Friend
- Hey dad, 2050 isn’t the paradise you imagined (part 2: Dystopia) – Johan Steyn, Business Day (For subscribers)
