“EFF defiant despite SONA ban”
February 8, 2024
Tight security for SONA amid EFF suspensions
February 8, 2024
President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to announce the date for the 2024 national elections within
15 days of the State of the Nation Address, which is to be delivered tomorrow evening.
“We look forward to the President delivering the State of the Nation Address tomorrow at 7 pm. It
will be the administration’s seventh – in a year which marks 30 years since Parliament ushered in the
democratic dispensation,” Presidential spokesperson Vincent Magwenya said.
Addressing the media at the Imbizo Media Centre in Cape Town earlier today, Magwenya urged all
South Africans to follow tomorrow’s address as it deals with the state of the nation, not only the
state of one segment or some segments of the nation.
“We are united in the progress we have made and united in the work we need to do to address the
challenges we face,” he said.
Magwenya said the President was recovering well from the flu and would be up to the task of
delivering his address. “Last night we were with him going through the draft [speech] until very late.
By then he had improved significantly,” Magwenya said.
On Friday, the President will be up at dawn to warm up for the annual Presidential Golf Challenge.
“The Presidential Golf Challenge is coordinated by the Minister of Public Service and Administration
and will raise funds for the Cyril Ramaphosa Foundation,” Magwenya said.
This year’s SONA holds special significance as it is not only the end of term, but also the address
ahead of South Africa’s celebration of 30 years of freedom and democracy. It is an opportunity to
reflect on how far the nation has come and recommit to working together to build the country
envisioned at the start of democracy.
