SA's fallen and can't get up

In my previous blog “Don’t gamble away SA’s future” I question the future of a country not providing proper education. So we’re halfway through the year and there hasn’t been a peep out of the political hacks regarding their plans to ensure education standards, particularly for the matriculants, will be improved and the tinkering down will be reversed. To the contrary, not only is nothing being done or communicated, there isn’t even an indication/inclination that something will be done.*

Folks say accountability starts with the electorate, this is true, but I believe electoral accountability will come, the accountability we need to see and have is government accountability. The ruling party continues to march forward with the Protection of Information Bill (PIB) and turns a deaf ear to calls of “halt”. If it is not the media appeals tribunal and PIB it’s simply pretending they are beyond reproach. Why is this? Is this because we are marching on the path of destruction and the banana republic or just the fact that they could not give a toss.

Justifications for this are as false now as when it started: the media needs transformation and the government needs to decide what will be released to the public at large. What arrogance? What nonsense? This is about denial, secrecy, never talking about failures, never talking about corruption and cronyism.

Why is this so? Is this a case of believing that nobody else’s views — citizen or political party — matter simply because you are the ruling party? If this is the case, we are in deep trouble. Democracy means you hear and share ideas for best practice with the ultimate interest being that of the people. The current practice of the ruling party is that of a one-party state. It is a one-party state that totally disregards what the populace is saying.

Where’s the proof you may ask. Let me point out a few glaring ones. The commissioner of police has yet to do something about the leasing of a particular building. We have not heard anything regarding the raid/invasion of the Public Protector’s office? Who is being held accountable? To mention anything about the tenders would be superfluous. But is anything being done? By who? When? And will the process ever be cleaned up?

Lawrence Mushwana’s incredulous reaction to Judge Robert Nugent’s findings pretty much highlights the rot at the core of what is wrong. Will anything ever happen? How about resigning? No! Gucci communists costing taxpayers millions in travel? Communists, mind you. Really showing that they believe in the workers by flying high. So the youth in the ruling party continue with their racist banter. Does anyone from the ruling party say anything of consequence? Do they get taken to task? Why are we repeating the same mistakes we have seen all over the continent 50 years and counting?

The SABC (ruling party mouthpiece) and its efforts against the M&G regarding the Robert Gumede ruling. So, they keep trying and trying, all at the taxpayers’ expense. The same taxpayers that carry the incredible load for the population. These are the same taxpayers that the ruling party and youth league members insult on a daily basis, from the coconuts, to tea girls, to cockroaches. While they all continue to live on the hog, we have people with no electricity.

How easy would it be to resolve these issues? If you were not in government as a deployed cadre but in the private sector it would be very easy. I will illustrate this with the SABC case.

Minister of communication: “I see you are again wasting taxpayer money to try and reverse the Gumede ruling?”

SABC management: “Yes, we are.”

Minister of communication: “Why?”

SABC management: “Because we do not want to accept the fact that we aired wrongly as this would prove the case that we are the mouthpiece of the ruling party.”

Minister of communication: “You do realise that we are supposed to provide unbiased reporting and news? You do realise that this is taxpayer money we are using to pursue this ridiculous path?”

SABC management: “But if we apologise we’ll be backing down. We will also be acknowledging that we did wrong? We never do that. Perhaps if we try one or two more times we will get a decision in our favour.”

Minister of communication: “Please do not appeal, drop it and in the future think before you spend money we do not earn or have.”

SABC management: “The ruling party will not be happy.”

Minister of communication: “I understand, but we represent the interests of the people and not those of the ruling party.”

What are the chances this would happen? Anyone?

The reason why this will not happen is because the rot, the cancerous rot, is at the core. Everyone is it to feed from the trough at the expense of the taxpayer.

As a taxpayer I do not have any recourse it would seem, other than the voting booth. So what do you do? Do you just let it happen and assume it is the natural course to a banana republic? Well, not for me. This may be a small measure but I am undertaking another option. From now own I am going to stop paying my property tax.

I refuse to continue to be assaulted by the connected few and then pay them to assault me too.

* @Lockstock for your next “lucky” guess, please await your “lucky packet” coming soon near you.