2 days ago

Informative Trust High 80% #sona #ramaphosa #infrastructure #mining #water-crisis #da #patriotic-alliance #western-cape #by-elections #anti-semitism #roedean #economy

Ramaphosa promises trillion-rand infrastructure drive; PA shocks DA in Western Cape by-elections

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Key Strategic Points

1 President Ramaphosa announced a one-trillion-rand infrastructure investment drive during SONA, though observers note similar promises have been made repeatedly without materializing.
2 Ramaphosa acknowledged water as South Africa's biggest crisis, replacing electricity, and said he is taking personal charge of a new national committee to address the issue.
3 The president explicitly rebranded mining as a sunrise industry and referenced 40 trillion rand in mineral reserves, highlighting a strategic 300-million-rand investment into Frontier Rare Earths in the Northern Cape.
4 The Patriotic Alliance won a shocking 65% of the vote in George by-elections, up from 22%, winning four consecutive seats off the Democratic Alliance in three weeks and becoming the third-largest party in the George Council.
5 Election analyst Wayne Suzman attributed the PA's success to holding core support, attracting smaller-party voters, registering new voters, and notably winning over Democratic Alliance voters.
6 Mining analyst Peter Major warned that South Africa's mining sector remains constrained by regulatory obstacles including the Mineral and Petroleum Development Act (MPDA), introduced in 2002 and repeatedly made more punitive, with no government indication of reform.
7 The DRC has surpassed South Africa as a mineral producer despite political instability, producing 3.3 million tons of copper annually compared to South Africa's 50 billion rand in total mineral output across all commodities.
8 David Shapiro expressed concern over Roedean High School's refusal to play tennis against King David, attributing the decision to anti-semitism and warning of rising anti-Jewish sentiment in South Africa since October 7, 2023, independent of Israeli military actions.

Notable Quotes

“[On mining] 'Mining is now a sunrise industry' with 40 trillion rand in reserves.”

— Cyril Ramaphosa, President of South Africa

“South Africa was once the undisputed heavyweight champion on the African continent... now we're even smaller than the DRC. The DRC had zero copper production 25 years ago, now they're at 3.3 million tons of pure copper, a solid number two.”

— Peter Major, Mining Analyst

“The Patriotic Alliance moved from 22% of the vote to 65% of the vote and really gave the DA a shellacking... The DA are in deep trouble in George and the PA are on the rise.”

— Wayne Suzman, Independent Election Analyst

“The hatred against the Jewish community in South Africa didn't start after the IDF invaded Gaza... it started when Hamas invaded Israel on October the 7th. That's when flags came out cheering and that's where the gathering of this hatred began.”

— David Shapiro, Stock Broker and Commentator

“I'm surprised that [prominent people] are not standing up [against anti-semitism]... the fear is the fear of a backlash, and you can get a pretty violent backlash.”

— David Shapiro

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Source

BN Daybreak: SONA Reality Check on CR's Trillion Rand Promise; PA shocks DA; Shapiro on Roedean

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Published

Feb 13, 2026

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