Publications
Partners
There is still an opportunity to rebuild the South African dream and shape a nation that even angels envy.
This generation has survived the demented traits of human greed and cruelty, but has also witnessed unprecedented love, laughter and forgiveness, which make up the unshakeable foundation that is South Africa.
Evil, in all its manifestations – whether through bigotry, corruption or crime – seems to be gaining the upper hand as things spiral out of control.
At a glance, ubuntu has evaporated into thin air, and our worst qualities have grown like thorns ready to prick the souls of our fellow human beings. Our dream of a better society seems like a distant, diminutive delusion.
But, at the last count, South Africa has millions of miracle workers with the combined power to quake the earth and drain the seas.
Our mistake was to put too much faith in politics, as if it was religion, and so when political leaders stumbled and faltered, as humans will always do, we did not only lose faith in them, but in ourselves, and despaired like a turtle that has to swim up a waterfall.
The past few years have put our democracy through a thorough test. We X-rayed it, and a crack was found in every institution. We were reminded harshly that it is the president of the country who appoints the chief justice. And, true to form, he opted for the one who is suspected to be the weakest.
The de facto head of the national broadcaster defied the regulatory body, which was given powers by Parliament – he basically said: “Come and bite me, if you have any teeth.”
The president had criminal charges reinstated against him, but the National Prosecuting Authority has cold feet, and he is still in office.
Our artists are claiming new territories beyond the established boundaries of free speech, defying evolution and developing elephantine hides as they forage through the forest that will, someday, become the citadel of the freedom to say what you like.
Isn’t that what you’d expect from a people who were nurtured by a defiance campaign?
Let us accept this: we will never be perfect, because no one is. But we must also agree that we will never be the worst, because no one should. Remember, South Africa, the world saw you as the new dawn for Africa. It saw you as the sun that rises in the south, one that would illuminate the dark continent with hope and deed.
The expectations of the international community were not misplaced, and we must not allow a few storms to hide that sun. We must be steadfast like a mother who trudges through frost for the sake of her children.
Countries do go through difficult times. All leaders are prone to madness.
Former Russian president Boris Yeltsin lost his mind while in office. He poked women during state events, made embarrassing statements and illegal decisions, and, for a long time, no one noticed.
But the young Russian business sector continued to grow.
Former US president Ronald Reagan also had some form of dementia but, protected by the impregnable fault lines of democracy, no one could do anything about it.
Business continued as usual.
We may never know whether Msholozi and the people he appoints are mad or not.
The rumours that he has become paranoid are as thick as Johannesburg’s smog in winter. You, me and everybody can only do what we know best – sell more of the products and services we offer, and make our country the place of our dreams.
Kuzwayo is the founder of Ignitive, an advertising agency
