The South African National Editors’ Forum (SANEF) says President Cyril Ramaphosa has failed to take questions this year following his updates on COVID 19 – despite his acknowledgement of the SANEF request earlier in the year.
SANEF has made the comments in a statement following their last meeting of the year.
The editors’ body says it is concerned by the lack of consistent engagement by the Presidency.
It says there was also a promise to engage with the media in July following the looting and violence, but this never happened.
“In a country dealing with multiple crises including a deadly pandemic, a struggling economy, policy uncertainty, unanswered questions around the recent looting, South Africans deserve to hear about these and many other issues from the head of state,” notes SANEF in a statement.
SANEF has urged the Presidency to consider reinstituting the cabinet indaba – where the media could interact with the top level of the executive. The last Indaba was held in 2015.
Statement: SANEF Holds Successful Council Meeting As It Calls On Government Mutually Respect Its Relationship With The Organisationhttps://t.co/WcZfB2nS5f pic.twitter.com/Hvo7czNxh7
— SANEF (@SAEditorsForum) November 21, 2021
