Pretoria - President Jacob Zuma on Sunday expressed his concerns at the tensions in Malamulele, in the Limpopo province.
Residents of the area have been protesting in a bid to have the area declared a separate municipality after complaints of poor service delivery from the Thulamela municipality.
Speaking at a lunch with editors from various media at the Sefako Makgatho Presidential Guest House in Pretoria, the President said the issue seemed to stem from ethnicity and this was of concern.
“[Ethnicity], it must not be encouraged in the country, dividing people by their kind is dangerous,” said President Zuma.
The issue of Malamulele was one of the issues that formed part of the President’s engagement with the editors.
Energy
Moving to the current electricity challenges being experienced throughout the country, President Zuma said the fact remains that South Africa has never had enough energy.
It is expected that the State of the Nation Address (SONA), which he will deliver at 7pm in Parliament on Thursday, will expand on the country’s energy constraints.
“The fact is we’ve never had enough energy in this country. We are dealing with it,” he said, adding that Eskom is busy building new power stations to address the matter.
In the same light, government is working to address challenges faced by the South African economy.
“Economic problems are historic. As government we are doing our best to address the issue of the economy.”
WEF
Earlier in his address, the President spoke of the World Economic Forum meeting which was held in Davos, Switzerland in January.
The meeting had discussed the growing gap between the rich and the poor which South Africa felt strongly about, he said. Global youth unemployment was another issue discussed.
Unemployment was not only affecting those with no or little skills but is also affecting those with skills as well, he said.
The President further added that South Africa was able to put its message across that it is part of the continent, and that as a country it is facing up to its challenges.
“The globe can feel that South Africa is moving forward with investment made in infrastructure,” he said.
He added that investors expressed optimism about the country’s mining prospects.
Lesotho
The President also spoke of the recent African Union (AU) meeting in Addis Ababa where a vast array of issues were discussed, including Boko Haram and the Ebola pandemic as well as the situation in Lesotho.
He said there will be a meeting on the Lesotho matter with the three coalition leaders on Monday. “It’s a complex country, small as it is,” he said. - SAnews.gov.za
