Gareth Cliff scores SA government 'ZERO out of 5'
Those areas are: Security, infrastructure, the economy, education, and health.
Citing rampant crime, Eskom's failures, a sinking GDP, and poor literacy rates, Cliff delivers a 'zero out of five' verdict in his Truth Report video.
He concludes that the government is failing to provide the basic services expected of it and questions what taxpayers are truly paying for.
Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1
Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
IOL News
an hour ago
- IOL News
Leveraging G20 presidency: South Africa's path to bridging the digital divide
How can South Africa navigate the complexities of the digital economy during its G20 presidency? Experts weigh in on the lessons to be learned from global counterparts amid pressing challenges. Image: IOL / Ron AI The experts have weighed in on the digital economy and digital divide in the G20, giving voice to where exactly South Africa finds itself in the global geo-digital landscape and what it can learn from other countries. South Africa's G20 presidency takes place when the world is facing a series of overlapping and mutually reinforcing crises, including climate change, underdevelopment, inequality, poverty, hunger, unemployment, technological changes, and geopolitical instability. The country has embraced the theme 'Solidarity, Equality, Sustainability' for its G20 presidency, but has also incorporated the spirit of Ubuntu. On the G20 website, it states: 'Countries that attempt to prosper alone amid widespread poverty and underdevelopment contradict the essence of Ubuntu and our collective humanity.' Tackling the conversation of the digital divide and digital economy, Associate Professor Jonathan Shock of the University of Cape Town's Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics has explained that while we can look to other countries and their strategies, the South African landscape has its own demands. 'Countries like Estonia have surged forward with building a strong digital economy, and there are certainly lessons to be learned from them. Estonia prioritised data protection laws before they built the technological infrastructure on top; they also built national platforms, like the X-Road secure data exchange layer, which foster interoperability, mitigating potentially siloed solutions which don't speak to each other. 'Singapore has created national digital training programmes (the SkillsFuture credit programme), industry-academia partnerships, and constant monitoring to understand the effects of their interventions,' Shock said. Associate Professor Jonathan Shock of the University of Cape Town's Department of Mathematics and Applied Mathematics. Image: Shock Lab / Website 'India is the country that has most quickly built up a digital ID system, which was rolled out to around 600 million citizens over four years. This has allowed for more financial inclusion in national benefits and unlocked high economic value. However, such a system, if built, has to be done with the appropriate level of cybersecurity awareness,' he said. 'This is a non-trivial task, and there are reasonable questions about privacy, gaps in the legal frameworks, and potential security vulnerabilities.' Shock explained that it is vital to study how digital economies have been implemented around the world, then adapt these solutions to build our own. He added that AI is a potentially powerful technology when used carefully, and, with training, can empower people to create their own businesses. 'It is easier than ever for someone to use AI to build their own app, create their own digital services, connect with customers or develop effective marketing strategies, but without access to training, those potential entrepreneurs will not necessarily know that such possibilities exist.' Shock said SA needs to celebrate its diversity and richness, as well as see the need to grow our own digital solutions, which takes investment in personnel, in infrastructure, and in data. 'We need to learn from the mistakes that other countries have made, in how resources are exploited - be they data, energy, or people - and see that there are other ways forward. We also need to understand the importance of data sovereignty and the colonial patterns of data extractivism.' CEO of LeanTechnovations, Rowen Pillai, said that across the G20, the digital divide isn't just who's connected, but rather who can afford to participate at quality. Pillai explained that even in advanced economies, rural users still trail cities on speed and reliability; in emerging markets, the bigger wall is the affordability of devices and data. 'We should shift from counting towers and instead start measuring meaningful connectivity for metrics like latency, speed, reliability, affordability, and safety at a district level, and tie budgets to closing those gaps,' Pillai said. CEO of LeanTechnovations, Rowen Pillai, said that across the G20, the digital divide isn't just who's connected, but rather who can afford to participate at quality. Image: Supplied 'A major part of the challenge is to move from pilots to scale, set outcome-based Scale Gates tied to meaningful connectivity. When a pilot hits district targets on speed/latency/reliability, affordability, and safe use, it should trigger a multi-year rollout via public procurement or blended finance. 'We balance private investment with universal service by modernising Universal Service Funds (USFs) into transparent, outcome-based tenders, pairing spectrum with pay-or-play rural obligations and co-funding neutral-host/backhaul, and by publishing quarterly district scorecards so operators are paid on verified improvements, not just availability,' Pillai said. 'In parallel, align the Digital Economy Working Group agenda: connectivity + digital public infrastructure + Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises ecosystems + equitable AI and require green siting and disclosure as standard, because AI-era data centres compete for the same power and water communities rely on.' Pillai said that the country should run a two-track strategy to adopt global best-practice governance now, and scale green, affordable compute at home. 'On governance, align local guidance to the National Institute of Standards and Technology's (NIST's) AI Risk Management Framework (which is practical, risk-based, sector-agnostic) and map cross-border work to the EU AI Act timelines that will matter to our exporters. That gives South African firms clarity without slowing innovation. 'On capability, we should leverage the AI Institute of South Africa hubs, the AI Collective South Africa (or similar) to rapidly build skills in safety, evaluation, and domain-specific AI (health, mining, agriculture), and establish an open evaluation centre that small firms can use to test models and datasets. Then we co-site compute with renewables, publish power and water intensity transparently, and make green PPAs(Power Purchase Agreements) a default for any hyperscale installations,' Pillai said. 'This is how we grow AI adoption while protecting constrained grids and water systems.' [email protected]
The Star
an hour ago
- The Star
Parliamentary committees to engage Lamola, Motshekga on SANDF chief's remarks in Iran
Mayibongwe Maqhina | Published 2 days ago The parliamentary Committees on Defence and International Relations and Cooperation plans to engage with Minister Angie Motshekga and Ronald Lamola over comments made by SANDF Chief, General Rudzani Maphwanya during his recent visit to Iran. This will be after President Cyril Ramaphosa has scheduled a meeting with Maphwanya. Maphwanya caused a storm last week when it emerged that during a visit to Tehran he pledged 'common goals' with Iran and claimed his trip carried 'a political message'. His trip, sanctioned by Motshekga, took place amid tensions between South and the US with President Donald Trump imposing a 30% tariff on South African goods. The Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on Defence and Military Veterans, Dakota Legoete, and the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee on International Relations, Supra Mahumapelo, noted with concern Maphwanya's remarks during his visit to Iran. Legoete and Mahumapelo also noted with alarm that the Department of International Relations and Cooperation has publicly distanced itself from the General's comments while the Presidency described the visit as 'ill advised'. They said the committees will have a joint meeting to engage with Lamola and Motshekga on the issue. Legoete said it was evident that there was a worrying lack of coordination between defence diplomacy and South Africa's official foreign policy. 'This disjuncture exposes potential misalignment and cohesion in the country's approach to international relations,' he said. Legoete added that the Department of Defence should draw long-term lessons from these events and ensure thorough alignment, going forward. He further stressed that the committee awaits the outcome of engagements between Ramaphosa in his capacity as Commander-in-Chief of the SANDF, Motshekga and SANDF leadership. 'These engagements must demonstrate unity, strength and synergy in how South Africa conducts itself on the international stage.' Legoete reiterated the committee's stance that 'the SANDF must remain a professional and apolitical institution, focusing squarely on its constitutional mandate to safeguard the Republic, while steering away from statements in the political domain'. Last Thursday, the Presidency said Ramaphosa was unaware about the 'ill advised' visit by Maphwanywa to Iran. Ramaphosa's spokesperson Vincent Magwenya stated that Ramaphosa did not sanction Maphwanya's visit as Motshekga approved the travel. 'As much as the president is the appointing authority and the commander in chief, he does not get involved in supervising the general's travel. That process sits with the minister. So the President did not know.' Both the Department of International Relations and Cooperation and Defence have distanced themselves from Maphwanya's remarks, citing that Ramaphosa and Dirco were custodians of foreign policy. Magwenya said Ramaphosa will meet Maphwanya within the next week regarding his 'ill-advised' trip. 'I can't say when that meeting will happen, but there will be an engagement between the President and the general. So it's still early to say what the outcome of that engagement will be.' He would not comment on the possible consequence for the defence chief amid calls by the DA for him to be hauled before a court martial. [email protected]
eNCA
an hour ago
- eNCA
Deputy police commissioner Sibiya challenging 'unlawful' suspension
JOHANNESBURG - South African National Commissioner for Crime Detection, Lieutenant-General Shadrack Sibiya, is fighting back against National Police Commissioner, Fannie Masemola's, notice of suspension against him. Sibiya's legal team says the suspension is unlawful and riddled with irregularities. They're demanding it be withdrawn immediately. Sibiya's lawyers are also pushing to stop parallel proceedings against him. This application is scheduled to be heard on the 26th of August. Sibiya's lawyers warn they may seek court orders against the process and even pursue costs against Masemola.
