With a week having passed since the State of the Nation Address (SONA) was presented, one had ample time to reflect on what was brought up (and what was not), as well as truly evaluate the state of our nation for myself.

 A week ago, President Cyril Ramaphosa took to the podium to formally open the National Assembly for the year, but moreover to win the hearts of his people once more in a bid to let bygones be bygones and fool the people once more. 

I, like many South Africans, watched naively to hear more promises made as well as the so-called “progress” that government has made.

Truly speaking, there are some advancements that we can truly credit the government for, however, one cannot help but be clouded by the many more issues that have gone unresolved, crisis that have emerged and an underlying to sense of hopelessness that's plagued so many of us.

Despite this, I sat and listened, waiting to hear something other than our energy crisis or the acknowledgment of the present socio-economic issues. I waited for concrete solutions, with realistic deadlines and an apology, for once again failing to ensure the safety of women.

Needless to say, I was underwhelmed and angry once President Ramaphosa had concluded his address, but I was more so displeased with other members of Parliament (MPs) who truly displayed their true nature over the past two days.

Allow me to explain.

What was supposed to be a formal debate to iron out issues about the SONA as well as other issues identified by MPs, saw the National Assembly denigrate itself into a place no longer worthy of the respect of voters.

The hurling of insults, the professionalism and simply put- the lack of decorum, was enough to give those watching a feeling of embarrassment at the state of our politics.

This type of behaviour speaks volumes regarding the caliber of our leaders, but moreover, serves as a matter of concern as the future of our country truly lies in their hands.

It is through the proceedings of Day 1 of the SONA debate that I truly realised the impact of the National Assembly on the social ills we face as a nation and how the views and behaviour of members of Parliament is a true reflection of some of the behaviour present among some people and some communities.

With President Cyril Ramaphosa having barely mentioned the country’s crisis of gender-based violence, opposition parties took it among themselves to address this, with many criticising Ramaphosa for not seeing the issue as not enough of a priority.

Bheki Cele, the Minister of Police, saw it fitting to address the opposition on this matter, but had very little substance to his argument as to why his department was failing to deal with the scourge of crime and gender-based violence.

This subsequently saw Cele pull the typical playground-style approach of calling someone out for something that they did, just because you have been called out.

Bheki Cele showed his true colours and used his platform to shame DA leader, John Steenhuisen for his adulterous past, as well as remarks he made last year, where he referred to his ex-wife as “road kill” in a well-known podcast.

When speaking on gbv and femicide, Cele called on women in opposition parties like the DA ought to hold their own leaders accountable before speaking on gbv, adding that Steenhuisen owes his ex-wife an apology.

In a moment that should have brought him embarrassment in his lack of decorum and accountability for his failure to correct the issue, Cele made a mockery of gender-based violence and the treatment of women in South Africa.

He proved to us all that he does not care to view it as a serious matter, but moreover, it is once again, the role if women to fix the crisis of gender-based violence, not the police.

Cele is not the only one to blame though. With many “jokes” and remarks, with terms like “women abuse”, or simply the way in which women MPs are treated by men, the issue is as clear as day.

Whether this comes from a place of ignorance or insensitivity is beside the point, because we as the people of this country expect better from those who are supposed to lead discussions on issues that affect us. 

We' find ourselves in a deep political crisis, where parliamentarians condemn issues and make a mockery of them afterward. How then, do we expect the eradication of such issues?

The fight against gender-based violence seems to be one we are losing as a nation, the question remains: are our politicians among the things holding us back as a nation?