#SONA - Sometimes a slap in the face is good

Last night was a nice cold wake up call for South Africa as we all sat watching our State of Nation Address degenerate into what looked like a big bar fight with half the room leaving before the President could continue his speech. Some of them were forcibly removed and others walked out of their own free will. It was a shocking moment in our history that left most of us stunned and silent.

Then when the president started speaking again, he didn’t even address the chaos or even attempt to lead us through it as a nation… he simply laughed and carried on with a mind-numbingly boring speech that brought us no hope or inspiration whatsoever. There was your moment, Commander-in-Chief. You missed it. You could’ve been human. You could’ve shown your heart for this country... But you didn’t. I could literally hear the sighs across the nation as we covered our eyes in front of the TV and shook our heads with sadness and embarassment.

But the country needed that wake up call… Let’s be thankful for it because the issues are there whether we are aware of them or not. My policy is to always find out sooner rather than later if I am in the pooh. My husband is a builder and I have had a few conversations over the years with subbies who have overspent and underperformed. Instead of sticking our heads in the sand and hoping it will sort itself out, we go to them and say “Ok, give it to us straight. How much pooh are we in here? I would rather know now than later.” I think every South African should be asking that question right now.  It’s a good question to ask because “Lala Land” always ends with an ice cold dose of reality sooner or later. Rather know what you're facing so you can try and be part of the solution. 

I don’t want to go on too much about Zuma because a lot has been said about him already…. To be honest with you, I have my hopes pegged on the other people in parliament – The ACDP, who even though they are a small party have done great things for this country and continue to do so… the DA, who even though I disagree with their policies on a few issues are at least providing great services in the Western Cape and are not shy to stand up to Zuma... and Cyril Ramaposa .…

Ah Cyril… you are positioned for greatness. You could well be taking over a nation in shambles, a nation that is desperate for hope, guidance, unity and the feeling that we are all equally respected and protected by our government. You are being handed a baton that is in shreds, BUT if you manage to pull it together and leave a united, inspired and hope-filled South Africa by the end of your term, what a legacy that will be! People of all colours are looking to you to reverse the damage done by our current government and put us back onto the road that Madiba started us on. There are many heartbroken #ProudlySouthAfrican people looking at their passports right now and doubting whether there will ever be true honesty and integrity in our government again. 

I am one of those that believe it is possible. We have overcome so much as a people. We are a nation of overcomers! We just need a good, strong, honest leader who cares. You are being lifted up in prayer, my friend. Please rise to the challenge. If you consider everyone in this rainbow nation whenever you make your decisions, and not just one group of people, it will not be long before the entire nation will give you their trust, their hearts and their gratitude - and your name will go down in history next to Madiba’s as another president who led this amazing country through stormy waters safely to the other side. We've seen it happen before. Let's see it again.

#PrayForOurNextPresident