I am dismayed at the falsehood that journalists, columnists and the media continue to perpetuate.
I refer to the column “Why Ramaphosa is going nowhere” (Power Brokers, November 13-19) in which Bejani Chauke, President Cyril Ramaphosa’s special envoy, is quoted as saying: “President Ramaphosa’s political mandate … is a mandate from the people of South Africa” (emphasis mine) and “it was the freely elected representatives who voted for him to be president”.
The above statements are blatantly false in that the people of South Africa did not give Ramaphosa a mandate.
First, the people of South Africa are not represented in parliament. Not one person in parliament represents the people of South Africa because it is the political parties — which South Africans vote for — that decide who goes to parliament as an MP.
Thus, if anyone gave Ramaphosa a mandate, it was the political parties in parliament.
Second, the parties nominate presidential candidates and it is MPs who elect the president.
Thus, the second statement above is also untrue as no “freely elected representatives” voted for Ramaphosa. Not one person who is in parliament is freely elected to be there; they are there because of our proportional representation electoral system.
DS Pulker
Milnerton
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