Thursday 28 May 2015

Who is this man?


Watching No 1 deliver a speech in his familiar amateurish way, makes a mockery of all officials and leaders in South Africa. Not only does he give the impression that he has no clue of what he is delivering, or supposedly did any preparation on the subject, he compounds this inefficiency with childish ridicule of fellow parliamentarians who simply exercised their right of free speech and filibustering in the House. 
His childish antics during his response to the president’s budget vote yesterday (27-05-15), shows the level of maturity (or lack thereof) of the man known to be our leader.  How does this show of idiocy reflect on the international community and what is thought of South Africans who elects someone to the highest office in the land, with the character to that of a retired clown struggling to make a comeback to his former glory. His responses to the challenge from the opposition to release the reports for the two scandals of Nkandla and Marikana borders on infantile. My 4 year old grandson would conduct himself with more maturity than this mampara did yesterday. I shudder to think what his fellow BRICS partners really think of him as our leader.
We, as the electorate, should insist that this idiot do NOT represent the South African people abroad, and that his speeches are delegated to his deputy instead. The more he is kept out of the public eye the better we (the South African people) are seen as a legitimate nation with reputable and effective leadership. He has become more and more embarrassing every time he appears in public and even in parliament. It’s time we overturned that 62% majority to a 38% minority vote. And it starts with the local Government elections next year, 2016. Vote anything but ANC next year!!

Tuesday 19 May 2015

The scourge that is racism.


You are probably thinking, “Ai, not another opinion/complaint of racism!!”

The more the topic is discussed and incidents of it are exposed, the better our chances of eliminating it from our society.

Being 21 years into our democracy much has changed regarding racial discrimination in society. The racial integration of schools and higher education institutions has empowered our future generations to be colour blind in the post-apartheid social sphere. Greater society has strived to eliminate the disease of racism in our lives, although various forms of it still very truly and openly exist. A typical example is the protest #Rhodesmustfall, from UCT students recently.  Very few people knew or understood that the protest was not only against the presence of a racist bigoted figure of the past, but was actually a result of their experiences of institutionalised racism within the policies of UCT. This kind of racism is still alive and well in our everyday lives. In the corporate world, the camouflaged presence of institutionalised racism is clear for all to see. People are still being side-lined from promotion opportunities, from enhancing their careers, or from being professionally trained in their line of expertise.

Other forms, like symbolism (stereotypical) or economic (Marikana?) racism evidently still exists in our society, and it may take another generation or more, to eradicate. Although I read about racist incidents daily, I’m utterly disgusted to still experience it in my own life with friends and sometimes family. I had the unfortunate incident of experiencing first-hand, disgusting discrimination of the worst kind from an old friend, who I thought was someone with an open mind given that this person hails from an alleged educated background and serves in the academic field. I was taken aback by the comments made, and realised I didn’t really know this person as well as I thought I did.

Tuesday 12 May 2015

The gaffer who is Allister Sparks


One of my earlier posts included a reference to Alister Spark’s article on the state of the nation with his comments and thoughts regarding the #Rhodesmustfall protests at UCT. I objectively argued that his understanding of the protests were taken out of context and that it seemed convenient for him and other Rhodes apologists to brush the issue aside, and label it as  trivial and time consuming. It only took a matter of time for Mr Sparks to reveal his true colours and show what he really thinks of apartheid South Africa. With almost sixty years of journalistic activism against the apartheid regime, Mr Sparks had washed all of that away with a single line expressed in sheer arrogance. His utterances regarding Hendrik Verwoerd being an intelligent politician and leader sent shockwaves and disbelief in journalistic circles. His motivations or reasoning for including Verwoerd in his list of admirable leaders seemed to be a weak attempt of justification, but the damage was done. Subsequent to his speech, the question that could not be answered still lurks. How could someone so intelligent formulate a policy that disadvantages millions of people, and destroys, instead of builds, relationships between cultures?
As with all other apartheid apologists and protectors of apartheid privilege, even Mr Sparks with his glittering career in journalism and his outspoken views against the regime, cannot contend with or understand the concept of being discriminated against.  The life of privilege which he led under apartheid can never compare to the life that the millions of his South African compatriots had to endure during that era. Mr Sparks will NEVER know what it was (and still is) like to be a black man in South Africa, or anywhere else in the Western world.
The answer to the question that lurks is one of pure hatred and bigotry for anyone of a different culture or persuasion.  A case in point is Professor Anton Stander from the University of Stellenbosch. This is a man with an impeccable list of academic achievements who is a nuclear physics lecturer. He revealed his racist bigotry with demeaning text messages to a fellow student on campus. How stupid can one be to send a sms, and not think that the number can easily be traced back to him? This proves that racism and bigotry makes the most intelligent people look like idiots!