Social media users have labelled Minister in the Presidency Khumbudzo Ntshavheni, International Relations Minister Ronald Lamola, and Trade Minister Parks Tau as “useless” for remaining silent during a meeting with US President Donald Trump at the White House on Wednesday.
Critics slammed the trio for failing to speak up on key issues affecting South Africa.
The South African delegation to the United States included a mix of political, business, and public figures including, Democratic Alliance leader and Minister of Agriculture John Steenhuisen; professional golfers Ernie Els and Retief Goosen; Richemont founder and Remgro chair Johann Rupert; Business Unity South Africa Vice President Adrian Gore; and Congress of South African Trade Unions President Zingiswa Losi.
A central point of contention during the meeting was the controversial topic of land expropriation.
Trump delivered a sharp critique of South Africa’s land policies, alleging the targeting of white Afrikaner farmers.
“We have thousands of people trying to come into our country because they fear they are going to be killed, and their land is going to be confiscated,” Trump said.
“You are taking people’s land away, and those people, in many cases, are being executed. They happen to be white, and most of them happen to be farmers.”
President Cyril Ramaphosa responded firmly, emphasising that South Africa’s Constitution protects land ownership while seeking to address historical injustices.
“The South African Constitution protects land ownership,” Ramaphosa said.
“And we are seeking to address the injustices of the past within the rule of law.”
While Ramaphosa spoke, Ntshavheni, Lamola, and Tau remained silent, looking at each other, smiling, and simply watching.
Their silence became more notable when White House officials played controversial footage of Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema chanting “Kill the Boer,” along with clips of uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK) members calling for land redistribution.
Ntshavheni was seen smiling and looking at Lamola, while Tau was just seated on the couch.
Meanwhile, Steenhuisen who “failed” to address the issue of Land Expropriation, discussed South Africa’s crime issues.
“We have a real safety problem in South Africa. I do not think anyone wants to candy-coat that,” he said.
Rupert also called on the US to help tackle crime.
“We have too many deaths, but it’s across the board. It’s not only white farmers. We need technological help. We need Starlink at every police station.”
Observers and social media users criticised the perceived lack of preparedness among the delegation.
Many questioned why Ntshavheni, Lamola, and Tau attended the meeting if they were not going to speak.
“Ronald Lamola is so useless… Not even a word, bro,” user @Therrour_ZAR posted on X.
Another user, @malokisa, added, “Lamola and Ntshavheni were useless.”
“Sorry, I can’t help you… they’re both utterly useless for anything more advanced than lying and looting. Ditto @the_dtic Minister Parks ‘Useless’ Tau,” said user @PositivelyNot.
“Ramaphosa’s delegation thought Squirrel’s usual concoction of colorful lies and empty promises would prevail… BIG mistake.”
However, political analyst Siyabonga Ntombela of the University of KwaZulu-Natal cautioned against jumping to conclusions based on silence alone.
“There is a proverb that says, ‘Even a fool who keeps silent will be considered wise,’” Ntombela told News.
“Sometimes you just need to let those who are tasked with leading lead.”
He said ministers are often tasked with advising and supporting the president, not necessarily speaking unless instructed.
“We do not know the details of the briefing, who was meant to talk and who was not. If they provided all the necessary information to the president beforehand, they did their job,” Ntombela said.
He rejected the notion that the delegation was unprepared.
“I do not agree that they wouldn’t have known what would be discussed. The president would have detected that during preparatory meetings,” he said.
“I think they were advised not to speak.”
Ntombela added that while the delegation might not have been perfect, there were always going to be criticisms regardless of who attended.
“Some wanted Special Envoy to the US, Mcebisi Jonas, to be there, which would have been nice, but given his position in the MTN Group, that could have opened another can of worms. Would he have spoken or kept silent? We would never know,” he said.
According to Ntombela, the meeting was far from easy but allowed South Africa to counter some of the misinformation circulating within the Trump administration.
Politics
