Thabiso Goba 15 August 2025 | 12:30
Ramaphosa emphasises National Dialogue as a platform for tough questions
One of the difficult questions Ramaphosa said need to be asked is why South Africa has a high rate of femicide.
UNISA is hosting a two day-convention to the National Dialogue at its main campus in Pretoria. Picture: Thabiso Goba/EWN
JOHANNESBURG - President Cyril Ramaphosa said the National Dialogue is a platform for South Africans to ask difficult questions to public officials about the state of the country.
The President gave a speech on Friday on the first day of the convention to the national dialogue, hosted at the UNISA main campus in Pretoria.
The convention serves as a precursor to the dialogues, which are due to take place across the country over the next nine months.
One of the difficult questions Ramaphosa said needs to be asked is why South Africa has a high rate of femicide.
He further challenged the audience with questions, asking:
- “Why do South African women have to live in fear of men?”
- “Why do so many people live in abject poverty while so few enjoy lives of opulence?”
- “Why, after decades of democracy, are the prospects for a white child still significantly better than those of a black child?”
- “Why are women consistently paid less than men for the same work?”
- “Why do LGBTQI+ individuals continue to face discrimination, stigma, and harassment despite our bill of rights?