ActionSA to Reconsider Participation in National Dialogue Over Growing Concerns
Press Statement by Athol Trollip MP
ActionSA Parliamentary Leader
ActionSA will reconsider our participation in the National Dialogue in light of concerns raised by key stakeholders and organisers, as well as the discontent expressed by South Africans who see this as yet another round of endless talk shops while urgent action remains absent.
Reports indicate that several respected legacy foundations have voiced serious misgivings about the government’s alleged attempts to control the dialogue and to rush its proceedings. Such haste undermines the very essence of the process and prioritises expediency over the genuine pursuit of reforms capable of reversing South Africa’s worsening socio-economic reality.
Central to our reconsideration is the fact that we are not prepared to lend credibility to what many already believe to be a window-dressing exercise that risks becoming a government directed platform, as several respected legacy foundations have suggested. Such an approach would be tantamount to putting lipstick on a pig.
South Africans must understand that this national dialogue did not originate solely from the ANC, but from all GNU parties who committed to it in the Statement of Intent. The fact that South Africans are now saddled with a crumbling process with diminishing credibility is a product of all GNU partners misreading the national mood.
ActionSA believes it is essential to evaluate whether this dialogue represents a real opportunity to pursue meaningful reform or whether it is simply a government-led initiative designed to create the appearance of engagement without delivering substantive change.
ActionSA to Reconsider Participation in National Dialogue Over Growing Concerns
ActionSA will reconsider our participation in the National Dialogue in light of concerns raised by key stakeholders and organisers, as well as the discontent expressed by South Africans who see this as yet another round of endless talk shops while urgent action remains absent.
Reports indicate that several respected legacy foundations have voiced serious misgivings about the government’s alleged attempts to control the dialogue and to rush its proceedings. Such haste undermines the very essence of the process and prioritises expediency over the genuine pursuit of reforms capable of reversing South Africa’s worsening socio-economic reality.
Central to our reconsideration is the fact that we are not prepared to lend credibility to what many already believe to be a window-dressing exercise that risks becoming a government directed platform, as several respected legacy foundations have suggested. Such an approach would be tantamount to putting lipstick on a pig.
South Africans must understand that this national dialogue did not originate solely from the ANC, but from all GNU parties who committed to it in the Statement of Intent. The fact that South Africans are now saddled with a crumbling process with diminishing credibility is a product of all GNU partners misreading the national mood.
ActionSA believes it is essential to evaluate whether this dialogue represents a real opportunity to pursue meaningful reform or whether it is simply a government-led initiative designed to create the appearance of engagement without delivering substantive change.