Free SA strongly rejects the so-called “National Dialogue” spearheaded by President Cyril Ramaphosa’s administration as a performative and exclusionary exercise. Despite its promises of unity, this project is neither national nor a dialogue, and has exposed and probably worsened the gaping divide between the state and its citizens.
Instead of empowering South Africans, the National Dialogue has proven to be a tightly managed and finely curated talk shop with little room for genuine, critical engagement. Many civil society organisations were either excluded, marginalised, or invited as an afterthought to legitimise a pre-scripted government agenda.
“We do not need a National Dialogue. We need national honesty,” said Reuben Coetzer, spokesperson for Free SA. “The South African public is not asking for more expensive panels, press conferences, or platitudes. We are demanding accountability, participation, and genuine democratic engagement.”
The absence of broad and meaningful public consultation violates the democratic values enshrined in Section 195 of the Constitution, which requires transparent, accountable, and participatory governance. True dialogue requires more than microphones, it requires a willingness to listen and change.
Free SA echoes the sentiments of numerous other civil society groups who have rightly characterised this Dialogue as exclusionary and stage-managed. Key grassroots voices, independent civic organisations, and critical commentators were notably absent from the platform, not because they are uninformed, but because they are inconvenient to the government’s expensive and obviously one-sided narrative.
Even worse is that government used this platform to deflect from its failures: from the deepening poverty, the erosion of rights, the sky-high youth unemployment rate, and the state’s continued inability to address systemic gender-based violence.
This is not the first time the state has used the illusion of consultation to rubber-stamp pre-made policies. Whether on wage hikes, cabinet bloat, or the regulation of health products like hemp and CBD, the pattern is clear: democratic process is increasingly being substituted with orchestrated performance.
Free SA Demands:
- That government halt its stage-managed “dialogue” and establish an independent, citizen-led process for public consultation;
- That future engagements are transparent, inclusive, and rooted in real participation, not public relations;
- That civil society, especially those critical of the state, be afforded equal footing in national policy discussions.
“We are not your audience, we are the public. We are not here to be impressed by your speeches, we are here to be heard,” concluded Coetzer.
Until government treats citizens as partners, not spectators, Free SA will continue to challenge every mechanism that substitutes image for integrity, and performance for participation.
About FREE SA:
The Foundation for Rights of Expression and Equality (Free SA) exists to empower South Africans to have their voices heard. We advocate for transparent governance, public participation, and democratic accountability. We fight for a South Africa where people—not politics—set the agenda.
Visit: https://www.freesa.org.za
[Issued by abpr on behalf of Free SA]