JOHANNESBURG, March 28 (Reuters) – South Africa disagrees
with SP’s assessment of the political risk in the country, and
political debate should not be confused with instability, the
Treasury said on Wednesday.
The ratings agency SP downgraded the country’s outlook to
negative from stable, saying this reflected the potential for a
ratings downgrade if economic and social problems fed into the
political debate ahead of 2014 elections.
“Political debate and a vigorous exchange of ideas on policy
options are part and parcel of the fibre of a democratic
dispensation. This cannot be construed as political
instability,” the Treasury said in a statement.
(Reporting by Stella Mapenzauswa)
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