SONA2018: Opposition welcomes postponement, but insists Zuma must go
Several opposition parties have welcomed the postponement of the State of the Nation Address.
Parliament's presiding officers briefed the media on Tuesday to announce the decision.
The Democratic Alliance wrote to the Speaker of the National Assembly to postpone SONA ahead of a motion of no confidence debate against President Jacob Zuma brought by the Economic Freedom Fighters.
"The EFF welcomes this development very much. We reiterate our call that the motion of no confidence should be convened prior to the State of the Nation Address which we don't know when will happen now. We know that Mr Zuma will refuse to resign just like he refused when former President Thabo Mbeki asked him to," says EFF General Secretary Godrich Gardee.
Democratic Alliance Leader Mmusi Maimane, who wrote to Baleka Mbete to request a postponement says the decision must be understood in context of the current issues facing the ANC.
"We cannot waste money, time, nor another iota of our dwindling credibility on the international stage by allowing Jacob Zuma to deliver the State of the Nation Address. The ANC is in complete turmoil and being held ransom by Zuma. At a price tag of over R11 million in taxpayers money. SONA cannot be reduced to a public relations exercise for a man on the precipice of impeachment and possible jail time," Maimane says in a statement.
COPE leader Mosiuoa Lekota, who is part of the coalition of opposition parties who are determined to remove Zuma, says Parliament must urgently complete the Rules for Zuma's impeachment.
"This must be done urgently so that the legislature can carry out its task of holding President Zuma to account and speedily clear the way for Parliament to proceed with regular duties. We can't delay SONA forever. Government must function and SONA plays an important role in directing the business of government," says Lekota.
ANC Chief Whip Jackson Mthembu explains what happens next:
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