Busisiwe Mavuso | Ramaphosa simply can't fix SA without first coming down hard on corruption

The president in February set a target to finalise a social compact to solve a range of social ills. But didn't we reach consensus on what needs to be done some time ago already? asks Busisiwe Mavuso. 

I was a bit perplexed when, in his state of the nation address on 10 February, President Cyril Ramaphosa set a 100-day target "to finalise what I call a comprehensive social compact to grow our economy, create jobs and combat hunger". He wanted to reach "a new consensus to deal with poverty, unemployment and inequality".

I thought we had already reached consensus on how to address those critical issues. After the onset of the Covid-19 pandemic, social partners at Nedlac presented a coordinated, holistic strategy which was incorporated into Ramaphosa’s Economic Reconstruction and Recovery Plan (ERRP) and adopted by Cabinet.