We are building SA, but politicians are holding us back
Do you want to know the secret to happiness? If you want serenity in your life, never feel sorry for a politician or allow their actions to get to you.
Despite what they say on the back of vans during election time, or in parliament while manoeuvring for power, it is important to take it with a pinch of salt.
One thing you should feel sorry for is the citizens of South Africa who constantly get kicked around like footballs on a dusty township field.
Like that field, we have been neglected after promises of greener pastures. Victims of empty promises.
Politicians may gloat and clap themselves on the back for outmanoeuvring each other, as ActionSA did after last year’s local elections and the EFF did after Wednesday’s ousting of Ekurhuleni mayor Tania Campbell, but it is us that they pull a fast one over time and time again.
The EFF abstained from the vote to remove Campbell this week, without explaining their decision- not even to those who voted for them.
It probably slipped their mind because they knew there were enough votes to make it seem like they had left the table with clean hands. They knew by simply walking away they were not directly delivering the death swipe to the minority coalition that they were an addendum to, but could still benefit from it.
The party is said to have asked the ANC to allow it to govern the metro in exchange for its support in Johannesburg and Tshwane.
It was a far more measured approach than publicly climbing into bed with the ANC as it did in Joburg, but the fragile balance of the coalition in Ekurhuleni allowed others to do the dirty work for them.
The events of Ekurhuleni and Joburg in the last few months may make for interesting watching but it is worth remembering that this is no sports match or episode of your favourite series.
There is far more at stake than just pride in backing the right horse and a good laugh at the outcome, politicians like no sports star or celebrity are literally playing with your life.
And that is what they often forget.
In the hullabaloo of trying to steal the headlines, and access to the public purse, they forget that they were voted there by the people. They forget their mandate is set by the people and decisions should be made by the people, not unilaterally.
Too often they claim to listen to our grievances and represent us when our votes are needed, only to be left on blue-tick when decisions are made.
ActionSA has probably come closest to breaking this alarming status quo.
The party abandoned coalition talks with the ANC that some of their leaders believed were crucial because they had run public consultations with their voters and suddenly “learnt” that the people who put them in power still did not want them to work with the ruling party.
They discovered that while they had been blowing in the wind, their voters had not.
The great gladiator fight over Gauteng metros holds a lesson that political parties should remember.
The people in the province had spoken loud and clear in the last election- they did not want the ANC in power.
In Tshwane and Joburg, like they did the local government elections before that, made sure the ANC did not have enough votes to rule outright. It was no oversight, like politicians in Luthuli House may ration away, especially when it happens twice.
The only argument was who should be in power then.
The DA was not seen as that alternative in itself, otherwise, it would have won an outright majority.
People wanted smaller parties that they could affiliate with, that they saw themselves in, and who they believed listened to them.
The rise in popularity of the small party is a symptom of a people begging to be heard. This a sign that the electorate, who are often portrayed as “illiterate” and deceived, is smarter than even the politicians themselves.
Tired of bigger parties not listening and being unaccountable, they installed smaller parties like the EFF, ActionSA, Patriotic Alliance, Al Jamal and IFP they believed would listen and take their grievances to the table.
They truly transformed the political landscape into one that represents South Africa: diverse with nuanced interests and lived experiences that work together. Radicals walk alongside conservatives on the streets of Joburg and it is that perfect balance that the electorate saw was needed more clearly than any politician did.
The biggest con that apartheid ever pulled was that SA is a monochrome nation of black and white. And the biggest con since is the one pulled by politicians that our politics should be too.
So imagine a voter’s frustration when parties they put in power with a mandate believe they have a divine right to change the script to one that better enriches them.
Are we at all surprised then that people no longer come out to vote?
We are told that voter apathy is the biggest challenge to our democracy and that we don’t care enough about our future but what is there to care about when our vote really does not count?
When the voting exercise is about as useless as switching on a tap in Seshego or a suburb in Tshwane, and when we are kept in the dark like it is stage 6 load-shedding.
In this season of power, water and possibly fuel shedding, we should shed the parties that disrespect our votes.
If you want serenity in your life, stop believing a politician when they say they care.
Despite what they say on the back of vans during election time, or in parliament while manoeuvring for power, it is important to take it with a pinch of salt.
One thing you should feel sorry for is the citizens of South Africa who constantly get kicked around like footballs on a dusty township field.
Like that field, we have been neglected after promises of greener pastures. Victims of empty promises.
Politicians may gloat and clap themselves on the back for outmanoeuvring each other, as ActionSA did after last year’s local elections and the EFF did after Wednesday’s ousting of Ekurhuleni mayor Tania Campbell, but it is us that they pull a fast one over time and time again.
The EFF abstained from the vote to remove Campbell this week, without explaining their decision- not even to those who voted for them.
It probably slipped their mind because they knew there were enough votes to make it seem like they had left the table with clean hands. They knew by simply walking away they were not directly delivering the death swipe to the minority coalition that they were an addendum to, but could still benefit from it.
The party is said to have asked the ANC to allow it to govern the metro in exchange for its support in Johannesburg and Tshwane.
It was a far more measured approach than publicly climbing into bed with the ANC as it did in Joburg, but the fragile balance of the coalition in Ekurhuleni allowed others to do the dirty work for them.
The events of Ekurhuleni and Joburg in the last few months may make for interesting watching but it is worth remembering that this is no sports match or episode of your favourite series.
There is far more at stake than just pride in backing the right horse and a good laugh at the outcome, politicians like no sports star or celebrity are literally playing with your life.
And that is what they often forget.
In the hullabaloo of trying to steal the headlines, and access to the public purse, they forget that they were voted there by the people. They forget their mandate is set by the people and decisions should be made by the people, not unilaterally.
Too often they claim to listen to our grievances and represent us when our votes are needed, only to be left on blue-tick when decisions are made.
ActionSA has probably come closest to breaking this alarming status quo.
The party abandoned coalition talks with the ANC that some of their leaders believed were crucial because they had run public consultations with their voters and suddenly “learnt” that the people who put them in power still did not want them to work with the ruling party.
They discovered that while they had been blowing in the wind, their voters had not.
The great gladiator fight over Gauteng metros holds a lesson that political parties should remember.
The people in the province had spoken loud and clear in the last election- they did not want the ANC in power.
In Tshwane and Joburg, like they did the local government elections before that, made sure the ANC did not have enough votes to rule outright. It was no oversight, like politicians in Luthuli House may ration away, especially when it happens twice.
The only argument was who should be in power then.
The DA was not seen as that alternative in itself, otherwise, it would have won an outright majority.
People wanted smaller parties that they could affiliate with, that they saw themselves in, and who they believed listened to them.
The rise in popularity of the small party is a symptom of a people begging to be heard. This a sign that the electorate, who are often portrayed as “illiterate” and deceived, is smarter than even the politicians themselves.
Tired of bigger parties not listening and being unaccountable, they installed smaller parties like the EFF, ActionSA, Patriotic Alliance, Al Jamal and IFP they believed would listen and take their grievances to the table.
They truly transformed the political landscape into one that represents South Africa: diverse with nuanced interests and lived experiences that work together. Radicals walk alongside conservatives on the streets of Joburg and it is that perfect balance that the electorate saw was needed more clearly than any politician did.
The biggest con that apartheid ever pulled was that SA is a monochrome nation of black and white. And the biggest con since is the one pulled by politicians that our politics should be too.
So imagine a voter’s frustration when parties they put in power with a mandate believe they have a divine right to change the script to one that better enriches them.
Are we at all surprised then that people no longer come out to vote?
We are told that voter apathy is the biggest challenge to our democracy and that we don’t care enough about our future but what is there to care about when our vote really does not count?
When the voting exercise is about as useless as switching on a tap in Seshego or a suburb in Tshwane, and when we are kept in the dark like it is stage 6 load-shedding.
In this season of power, water and possibly fuel shedding, we should shed the parties that disrespect our votes.
If you want serenity in your life, stop believing a politician when they say they care.
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