On June 10 1997, the then deputy president, Thabo Mbeki, told the National Assembly that: “Assertions have been made about declining financial management standards in government, which is attributed to inefficient blacks, who, it is said, occupy their positions by virtue of misplaced affirmative action policies. In reality, we are not far from the day […]
Elections
Posted inNews/Politics
Zille and Ramphele – long live assimilation, long live!
Black power is long dead. If Mamphela Ramphele and black consciousness meant anything, that dream has been dissolved into the DA. The most recent example of this assimilation: Ramphele joining the DA. While watching the images of hugs and what was described by Ramphele as “the moment of greatness”, I was torn. Is this really […]
Posted inNews/Politics
The DA-Agang arranged marriage
By Judy Sikuza As folklore will tell you, arranged marriages have always been a contentious matter — whether you are for the idea or against it. But politically, this old concept of an arranged marriage may have some fascinating consequences for the political landscape of South Africa 20 years into democracy. What is one supposed […]
Posted inGeneral, News/Politics
DA election candidates: Not business as usual
Modern politics is often an exercise in disenchantment. Never mind the politics of austerity; politics in general can be rather austere. In 2014, politics amounts to the realisation that Barack Obama’s “yes, we can” is impossible in the face of American partisan bickering. It is the understanding that there will always be Nkandlas and arms […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Reasons not to vote EFF?
My previous column elicited a wide range of public and private responses that have caused me to reflect again on my decision to vote for the EFF in 2014. Having considered most of these arguments — and more — before stating my intention to vote for the EFF, I think that I owe it to […]
Posted inNews/Politics
EFF skating on thin ice
Over the past few weeks, I have watched with great alarm as an organisation that occupies a special place in my heart, the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF), sinks into the abyss of gutter politics that have come to characterise our country’s political milieu. It started with the opening of a house built for a resident […]
Posted inNews/Politics
The struggle against fear is permanent
If there is anything we learn from Nelson Mandela is that an important yet normally overlooked facet of struggle is the struggle against fear. In his prison cells Mandela realised that the liberation movement could not win if it did not defeat white fear of a black government. He rightly realised that had he been […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Why I will be voting EFF
1. More than two-thirds of our population is under 35. Out of the parties contesting the forthcoming elections, the EFF is the best-placed party to represent the majority of this sizeable demographic whose aspirations and frustrations will heavily impact on the future of our country. 2. More than 70% of unemployed South Africans are under […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Black diamonds could vote EFF
By Ntombenhle Khathwane There has been much speculation as to where the black middle-class vote will go. What is evident is that there is no party that totally encapsulates the aspirations of these people. Under the current political and economic landscape, the black diamonds could vote EFF as a protest vote against the ANC or […]
Posted inGeneral
Don’t like the ANC, vote for someone else. But who?
By Sydney Ainsworth Majoko The advent of democracy in South Africa should have brought with it a level of freedom not experienced before. One of the most difficult things one can face in a liberal democracy is having the right to vote but also a feeling of “damned if I vote this way and damned […]
Posted inNews/Politics
Tsvangirai, it’s time to step up or step down
To anyone who has been paying close attention to developments in Zimbabwe since 2009 – after the formation of the government of national unity (GNU) – the 2013 election result was almost a forgone conclusion. Governments of national unity, as I have written elsewhere, create a false sense of security and unity in deeply polarised […]
Posted inEquality, News/Politics
Young people are the majority and should act like it
By Frederik de Ridder In 2009, 23 million people registered to vote, and 18 million voted. In 2014, 21 million people in SA will be between the ages of 18-35 years. Seven million people will be between the ages of 18-24 years and 4 million young people will not be in employment, education or training. Also in 2014, 1 million […]