How party leaders scored

This week's state of the nation debate saw opposition leaders take shots at President Jacob Zuma's speech. The Sunday Times political team rates the top five opposition party leaders out of 10.

The Sunday Times political team rates the top five opposition party leaders out of 10.

Democratic Alliance: Mmusi Maimane (6)

This was Maimane's maiden speech and he lived up to his reputation as a good speaker. He weighed in with a staunch DA speech that at times sounded somewhat like his election addresses, but also contained policy proposals.

He told Zuma that government cannot truly create jobs.

Only business can do this and a government's role is to create a conducive environment by cutting red tape.

He asked Zuma not to sign legislation on minerals, expropriation and infrastructure development regulation because the DA believes it will inhibit development.

Maimane was attacked by ANC speakers.

Human Settlements Minister Lindiwe Sisulu was forced by the chair to retract certain statements and senior ANC MP Yunus Carrim called him a "suburb poster boy".

To his credit, Maimane appeared to take the attacks in his stride.

Economic Freedom Fighters: Julius Malema (7)

In his maiden speech, Malema did not disappoint, calling Zuma's speech uninspiring and lacking a theme. But perhaps it will be remembered for the chaos it later caused.

The commander-in-chief of the modern-day Red Menace wasted no time in getting under the ANC's skin by taking on senior government MPs like Jackson Mthembu and Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande. This landed him in trouble and he was kicked out the next day for using unparliamentary language.

If his party sticks to the line they took this week, it will struggle to be effective because its members may be kicked out more often. You have to be in it to win it.

United Democratic Movement: Bantu Holomisa (7)

Holomisa is no stranger to the state of the nation debates, having led his party in parliament since 1999, and his maturity showed.

He took a constructive but critical approach, calling for a rethink on the allocation of resources to provinces based on their population size.

Whereas most of his peers attacked Zuma and each other in their speeches, Holomisa offered suggestions for how the president should intervene in the troubled mining sector.

Jokingly, he warned his peers, like the DA, "not to start with him". This was a rather different approach from the no-holds-barred approach by other opposition parties.

Inkatha Freedom Party: Mangosuthu Buthelezi (5)

The veteran IFP leader's speech is by now a hardy annual, basically consisting of a history lesson focusing on his view of his own and his party's role in South African history over many years.

Ironically, Buthelezi referred to Zuma's speech as the "same old", but his, save for adding an attack on Deputy Science and Technology Minister Zanele Magwaza-Msibi, was exactly that.

Buthelezi, who turns 86 in August, looked fit and showed he had not lost the fire in his belly. Now, if only he could experiment with some new content in his speech.

National Freedom Party: Zanele Magwaza-Msibi (5)

Magwaza-Msibi, deputy minister of the Department of Science and Technology, delivered a rather lukewarm critique of Zuma's address.

As was expected, she toned down the criticism of the ANC, which had given her the post of deputy minister. She was the only opposition leader to defend Zuma's speech.