How boring was the State of the Nation address last week?
We have become so accustomed to the juvenile antics of the EFF, that we have forgotten that the SONA is actually meant to be a bit on the dull side.
I think most people watching President Cyril Ramaphosa’s speech last week secretly hoped for some Malema shenanigans.
You could almost feel the tension in the air at the start and then for the duration of the speech.
Last week I wasn’t sure what was going to happen. There was no way of predicting what course of action the EFF was going to take.
But in the end, it appears caution won the day over bravado and childish taunting.
I say caution because I am pretty sure the EFF debated the issue very carefully and they needed to decide on what to do.
And I believe their decision was based entirely on what it would mean for them at the polls come 8 May.
As I said in my previous piece, South Africans are fed-up and I get the feeling that we can’t wait to get to the polls for these elections. Julius Malema and his band of vocal misfits understand that while acting up would have been entertaining, it would also have fuelled voter anger at the status quo.
And let’s face it, the EFF disrupting Parliament is no longer revolutionary; it is part of the status quo now.
What we want is a familiar sense of order and progress. In our leaders, we want to know what’s coming.
And like I said last week, Ramaphosa commands great respect.
I think it has to do with his demeanour and language proficiency and that he means and appears to understand the words that are coming out of his mouth.
Messing in his mouth (as my mother used to say) is the sort of rudeness we are done with. For now! So well played Malema.
But I suspect at the next SONA, after the elections, the EFF is going to let it all hang out again.