President Cyril Ramaphosa has been accused of “adopting” DA phrases. 

In his latest newsletter, Ramaphosa said he planned to build a “capable state” that would fulfil state-owned enterprises' (SOEs) mandates effectively and add value to the economy.

He said a “capable state” would deliver services speedily. 

“A capable state starts with the people who work in it. Officials and managers must possess the right financial and technical skills, and other expertise.

“If we all work together to build a more capable and developmental state, we will be that much closer to realising the SA that we all want.”

On Twitter, DA federal council chairperson Helen Zille said: “I suppose using the right words represents progress. The [president] has now adopted the phrase 'capable state' that we have used for over a decade.”

According to Zille, the “adoption” of DA ideas was nothing new.

It is unclear when the DA coined the term “capable state”, but it forms part of the party's values and principles.

However, the term “state capture” was first used by the World Bank in theearly 2000s to describe what was happening in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.

The term was popularised in SA in 2016, after allegations of corruption by the Gupta family, former president Jacob Zuma and members of the ANC.