SA: Thandi Modise: Address by Speaker of the National Assembly, on the occasion of the Policy Debate on Vote 2, Parliament (01/06/2021)

4th June 2021

SA: Thandi Modise: Address by Speaker of the National Assembly, on the occasion of the Policy Debate on Vote 2, Parliament (01/06/2021)

National Assembly Speaker Thandi Modise

Deputy Speaker,
House Chairperson,
Honorable Members

Times have changed. The daily slog has not necessarily changed – we are still dealing with poverty, inequality, and rising joblessness. Coronavirus pandemic has simply increased and exaggerated the contradictions under a non-performing world economy which engender deep feelings of fear and frustrations.

The unpredictable mutations of the virus; the impact on production, the number of deaths, have not strengthened assurances about the future-anxiety and depression have become as the world waits for “the” vaccine that can guarantee the life and a return to a situation where economic and political forces are not sources of increased anxiety and alienation. Under these conditions’ citizens become vulnerable; the usual freedoms of thought, expression, and association pale - we feel that in our personal spaces, we can no longer fully control our destinies – we must rely on the herd, the collective, the leadership for survival. So, we support the work done by the Executive during this period to preserve lives, jobs, and the dignity of many within our borders.

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