The comments currently surrounding the appointment of the next chief justice and the value of the Constitution to our masses demonstrates the need for an explanation on both.
We need to lay to rest the misconception that some would have us believe ie that the Constitution was some sort of a sell out to the whites and against the interests of our masses who are overwhelmingly black.
Explain why those who wish to be free to loot and pillage the wealth of this country at the expense of those masses are irritated by the presence of the Constitution.
Those who have the interests of the masses at heart and intend to ensure that their interests are protected are fully aware that the Constitution in no way limits their honourable intentions.
The Constitution
According to the New Oxford Dictionary a constitution is a set of fundamental principles or established precedents according to which a state or other organisation is governed. These rules together make up ie constitute, what the entity is. When these principles are written down into a single or set of legal documents, those documents may be said to comprise a written constitution.
The Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 includes a Bill of Rights and represents the collective wisdom of the South African people which was arrived at by general agreement after the largest public participation programme ever carried out in South Africa.
It stands supreme in so far as everything that the government — or any other proposer — submits as legislation has to comply with its principles.
If you read the Bill of Rights all your rights to equality, human dignity, life and freedom and security of the person — among many others — are guaranteed in the Constitution and politicians cannot enact laws which contravene those rights.
If it existed in 1948 South Africa could never have had apartheid because the Constitutional Court (ConCourt) would have rejected the legislation from day one.
The function of the judiciary — in so far as this argument is concerned — is to ensure that the rights of the masses are not infringed by any legislation. If it does then the judges of the Constitutional Court refer it back to the lawmakers to fix it.
An example being the effectiveness in fighting corruption requires that the Hawks be independent. If the politicians can get to them then they are not going to be able to function without fear or favour. So the ConCourt judges told lawmakers that the legislation giving rise to the Hawks needed to ensure their independence in order to comply with the Constitution.
Let’s do a Q + A so as to understand why the ConCourt did this and why it is important to the masses :
Q : If the politicians are able to steal money from the taxpayers whose money are they stealing?
A : The masses because the priority of this government — supposedly — is upliftment and every cent stolen is a cent less for the masses.
Q : What colour are the masses?
A : The overwhelming majority of our population and masses are black.
Q : If the opposition, ANC and other parties are adamant that the corruption be stopped does this stolen money go to them?
A : No the recovered money is applied for the benefit of the masses.
Q : When tenderpreneurs steal money whose is it?
A : As we can see that of the masses who aren’t safeguarded by tender procedures, which often leads to inferior work at inflated prices. In addition BEE companies are stiffed in favour of cronies or those who give kickbacks.
Q : When people defend them what are they in fact promoting?
A : They are promoting that one or more dishonest politicians or people of influence should be given the wealth of the country that is being stolen from the masses and ensures that BEE-compliant black businesspeople who won’t bribe politicians or officials are ineligible to share in the wealth of our country.
Q : Is someone who attacks these thieves racist?
A : No how could attacking people who steal money from the masses or deprive honest businesspeople be racist? The motive of those who defend the thieves is however suspect.
Q : When someone asks whether the press hate any black man who gets rich, are they right?
A : No the press hate anyone who steals from the country. Think of it as protecting more than 30 million black people — if racism is the topic — against a handful who have stolen their money.
Q : Why do people then use racism as a defence to media investigations?
A : Because most people aren’t lawyers and politicians. The disgusting people who do this don’t tell the masses the truth. Instead of asking the masses whether they would be cross if they have stolen the money earmarked for their upliftment — they are black as well after all — they ignore the facts and tell the masses that it’s the media picking on us because we are black. If the masses knew the truth do you think they would still support them?
Importance of chief justice
Up to now the ConCourt has stood like a rock in ensuring that the principles of the Constitution — the protection of the people of South Africa — are upheld.
So when politicians bring legislation like the Protection of Information Bill to the court to establish whether it is constitutional or not it gets bombed out because the judges are not the masses who can be swayed by catchy slogans. They are highly educated men and women who know what the Constitution says and why it protects inter alia freedom of speech and the free flow of information.
In order to stand firm against the government and other pressure the judiciary needs to be led by a man or woman of great intelligence, proven courage and the utmost integrity.
If weak, the judiciary could land up being a rubber-stamping plant for highly dangerous legislation.
Let’s do another Q + A using the Protection of Information Bill to demonstrate this :
Q : Do we need a modern Protection of Information Bill?
A : Yes if it relates strictly to issues of national security and does not overlap into the commercial sector. In addition there needs to be a safety mechanism that says any documents relating to corruption automatically lose their privilege.
Q : What other uses than national security could the Protection of Information Bill have?
A : As things stand dishonest politicians and people in authority could use it to stamp as confidential all proof of their theft.
Q : Why would that be in the interests of national security?
A : It’s not. You could term it in the interests of Dirty Cheese Puffs. The effect is you go to jail for reporting thieves who have stamped proof of their theft secret in the interests of national security.
Q : Whose money are they stealing?
A : The masses.
Q : Why?
A : Because the money taken from taxpayers is to be used for the people of South Africa, not to make thieves rich.
Q : Is there an example?
A : Use the arms deal. If it can be shown that the reason why South Africa bought tens of billions of rands worth of allegedly unnecessary arms was because there were allegedly massive kickbacks involved, how would that look? What would education look like, for example, with another R50 billion at its disposal?
Q : How can people block the masses from finding out?
A : Easy, implement a Protection of Information Bill (POIB) and stamp every document as secret. All you need is a weak judiciary to rubber stamp that legislation and the guilty parties are safe. If you didn’t have a Constitution you could just pass laws like that, without the masses being protected, to your heart’s content.
Q : Why then would some people feel the Constitution is a sell-out?
A : Great men like Madiba knew that it was there to protect the people — in having judges who would not allow legislation that could be used to abuse our people and all the rights guaranteed to them in terms of it. Those who are in a privileged position and have criminal intent realise that these judges could block their plans.
Q : How?
A : As described above. By blocking a law allowing criminals in privileged positions who have stolen state money to classify proof of their theft as secret in the interests of national security. If they could get the ConCourt to start confirming acts like the POIB, as it now stands, then it would become redundant as a check on abuse of power.
Q : Is the Constitution a sell-out?
A : To those who would like to turn SA into another Zimbabwe — save for the privileged few who live like kings — it is a sell-out. After all why shouldn’t they be allowed to steal money from the masses? For those who care about the masses they know it is anything but a sell-out and stands in the way of dishonesty and greed.
Q : Why is the chief justice vital?
A : Because if that judiciary is in the hands of strong people who care about South Africans then the system of checks and balances is in place. If however it is people who are unable to withstand pressure then protection against abuse is gone.
Q : Why is this important?
A : Because if the judiciary becomes part of the problem as well, the masses have no legitimate means of calling the government to account. They may then seek other, far less appetising means.
Q : But you are white how would you know what the masses think?
A : Because unlike most whites I have worked with the masses that are charged by the criminal justice system. Since 1997 I’ve dealt with those who are charged with murder, armed robbery, hijacking etc etc. Watching those who never had a chance under apartheid now being stiffed by people who steal from them using catchy slogans and fancy lawyers to try and justify this disgrace. That is why I have always stood up for AA, BEE, land redistribution at a far more frantic pace but slammed anyone who dares to steal their money and use garbage like “because I’m black as a defence”. What are they green?
The interests of the masses of South Africa are protected by the Constitution, which represents the collective wisdom of the South African people and which was arrived at by general agreement after the largest public participation programme ever carried out in South Africa
Those who consider it a sell-out and believe that the chief justice post is irrelevant to the masses of our country either don’t understand how these work or — worse — do and have compelling reasons why they want it removed or in the hands of those they believe they can manipulate.
A word of advice — Our masses are not stupid, they just haven’t had the opportunity of many of those who are in a privileged position. They are also not the people of Zimbabwe who will allow people to live like kings while they are fed food by aid agencies and garbage like “imperialism and colonialism” to justify billions that have disappeared.
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