SONA debate descends into chaos as Malema accuses Ramaphosa of GBV
Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader, Julius Malema has accused President Cyril Ramaphosa of abusing his late first wife, Nomazizi Ramaphosa.
He made the accusation during a debate yesterday, following Ramaphosa's State of the Nation Address last week.
"On domestic violence, when I spoke here during the State of the Nation last year, I said, 'Anyone who has never beaten his wife in the past 25 years must raise his hand' and I said 'I can do that because I have no history of such things'".
"I've never, not once. Not my ex, not my wife, not anything, I've never laid a hand on my wife. I asked that question precisely because I got information that the President use to beat his wife Nomazizi, the late wife of the President. May her soul rest in peace."
ANC MP Boy Mamabolo made a similar claim against Malema.
"My question to honourable Malema is that gender-based violence is happening at your house. The matter has been dragging for too long. Members of the EFF instead of them condemning the issue, they decided to crack a joke, so that they can deviate from the matter. You are abusing your wife. We want you to stand here, in front of the nation and assure us if the matter is true, are you going to apologise. My question to you is, are you abusing your wife?"
The EFF leader replied that he has never assaulted his wife.
Malema left the National Assembly along with other EFF MPs - after he refused to withdraw his claim that President Ramaphosa abused his late first wife.
Minister in the Presidency, Jackson Mthembu spoke out against the EFF's behaviour in SONA last week.
"We were subjected to spurious points of orders, childish antics and unruly behaviour. We agree with Father Michael Lapsley in characterisation of the EFF's behaviour in this house as anti-democratic, totally unacceptable and actually reprehensible. The EFF's behaviour is uncouth and disrespectful."
Opposition party leaders came down hard on Ramphosa during the SONA debate. He's been lambasted about jobs, the state of our SOEs and service delivery.
DA leader, John Steenhuisen told Ramaphosa that he had let the country down after coming into power.
"You failed to make the required reforms to free up our economy, win back investors and create jobs. So instead of turning the corner and getting better, things have got worse. Today it's hard to remember how we all felt back then because a litany of bad news in recent times is relentless. Over the past two years, every single number in our country has moved in the wrong direction."
The IFP's Mangosuthu Buthelezi says a lot of work that was started in 1994 has still not been completed.
"Leaders living above the people can envision themselves. We find ourselves now in desperate times with an economy all but collapsing. Corruption has brought us here. It is not that South Africa is without hope, potential or assets. As the President said 'there is unbounded potential'."
Mthembu says the country's unemployment rate is high because a skewed economy, but add something is being done to improve things.
"As one of the measures to address our prevailing economic challenges, Mr President when you first came into office in 2018, you set a very ambitious target of attracting R1.2 trillion in investments into our country over a period of five years. We are within the first two years of our investment drive already with a total of R664 billion in investment commitments. Which is more than half of our five-year target of R1.2 trillion."
