The challenge of ethics in South Africa is swelling unabated, in my view. Most public servants are not doing what they are employed to do; most members of communities keep a blind eye to dreadful social injustices, and so on. The reality of our poor ethics is leading to non-accountability, lack of caring for one another, carelessness, and so on. Ours is becoming a fragile zone of inexplicable and despicable bitterness and envy! - Dr Vusi Gumede, chief policy analyst in the Presidency’s Policy Co-ordination and Advisory Services
The latest survey data implies that about 60% of those surveyed are confident of the South African future, a sharp decline from 86% in 2005 and 84% in 2006. In terms of race relations, about 50% of those surveyed in the latest survey had felt that race relations were improving, compared to 60% in 2005 and 58% in 2006. Lastly, and most disturbingly, there is a decrease in the share of those that are proud to be South African: from 90% in 2005 to 78% in 2007.
I’ve often wondered about people who failed to see the signs of a nation moving towards a corrupt dictatorship, for example, in Nazi Germany or Zimbabwe. How could they not see it, I’ve wondered. I think the signs are here in South Africa. We’re sliding inexcorably into corruption at the very top of our government and they want power at any cost. That means they’ll hold on to power at any cost. The next step is repression and human rights abuses. I believe it’s time to leave the country.
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2 comments:
I cannot help but intervene: I feel that my Blog piece referred to has been quoted out of context. The piece I have recently posted to my Blog (www.thoughtleader.co.za/vusigumede) on SA is a social science endeavour aimed at a robust conversation about our country and possibly culminating to practical things that we should do as a nation to get to where we all prefer to be as a nation. I frequently try this: you can see all my write-ups (published scholarly papers, chapters in books, newspaper articles, my Blog’s polemics, etc). The piece in question was an ice-breaker to a series I will be unleashing (once a month) on various socio-economic, political and psychosocial dynamics in our land of possibilities.
I do not think that anybody should leave our country which has a lot of potential. I also disagree that there is "death of democracy" or anything resembling that here in SA. I think we should all try to make it a better place to live in, at least for our children and our children’s children and their children.
From Vusi Gumde
Thanks Vusi for setting the record straight. In my opinion though democracy in South Africa is dead. It will take a while for reality to catch up to the ordinary citizens. If you look at the ordinary levels of corruption that go straught through all strata of society, you're actually dealing with a society and its structures rotten to the core. Police, government, ordinary citizens.
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