DA gives Zuma an F - again
2012-12-06 14:37
Cape Town - President Jacob Zuma scored an F again this
year, his deputy achieved a middling score, and Agriculture Minister Tina
Joemat-Pettersson is bottom of the class, according to the DA's 2012
"Cabinet Report Card".
Released by the DA in Cape Town on Thursday, the reports
states that Zuma has failed both his office and South Africa, "and should
no longer be entrusted with the presidency".
Briefing the media on the report's content, parliamentary
leader Lindiwe Mazibuko said Zuma had "failed comprehensively to provide
effective leadership in government".
She cited government's "lacklustre response" to
events at Marikana earlier this year, the so-called Nkandlagate scandal, and
the country's "lack of economic policy direction", among reasons for
his scoring an F.
These issues, and others, had also been what had
motivated the DA, along with seven other opposition parties, to table a motion
of no-confidence in Zuma last month.
Mazibuko said Zuma's score "stands in contrast to
Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe, who we have awarded a C".
Mazibuko said that while Motlanthe was not the top
performer in Cabinet, he had "displayed noteworthy qualities which
President Zuma clearly lacks".
These included a dedication to the Constitution, an
honest approach to the serious challenges facing government, and a willingness
to engage openly with Parliament and South Africans.
At the briefing, the DA's Wilmot James singled out
Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries Minister Tina Joemat-Pettersson for special
mention.
"It is worth acknowledging separately the quite
disastrous and embarrassing tenure of [this minister], who... received an F.
"Her handling of almost every single matter before
her has been so incompetent and negligent that there is no longer any doubt
that she should be removed from Cabinet without any further delay."
James later told journalists that when it came to
Joemat-Pettersson, if the DA's grading system - which runs from A to F - had
gone below an F, "we would have considered that as well".
Other ministers in the 34-member Cabinet who scored an F
include Minister in the Presidency Collins Chabane, Labour Minister Mildred
Oliphant, Police Minister Nathi Mthethwa, and State Security Minister Siyabonga
Cwele.
Top 2012 performers were Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi
and then Science and Technology Minister Naledi Pandor (who moved to home
affairs late in the year), who both received an A.
On Motsoaledi, the report finds that under his
leadership, the health department has "achieved significant successes in
the fight against HIV/Aids".
On Pandor, it says she had performed "an admirable
job of setting and pursuing a clear vision for science and technology in South
Africa".
- SAPA
