Make the change you want in SA

HOT TOPIC: Widespread apathy

I READ the eloquent words of George Devenish regarding the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill (“Bill damages democratic process”, November 21), Ian’s SMS about what Brian Molefe becoming a colonel meant for South Africa (“Army confirms junk status”, November 21) and the need to pray for the country to fly straight that the NMB Church Leadership Group wrote (“Urgent prayer for country needed”, November 24), and they turned out to be connected. Yes, this is how things are. Now here’s why that is so and, more importantly, what can be done to change the situation.

South Africa is freer than it was during apartheid, that’s true, but it is not a democracy and has never been.

The NP and ANC were not democratic parties. One was nationalist-racist and the other communist, and neither trusted “the people” or ever wanted them to have power.

Unsurprisingly, they conspired at Codesa to take power from the hands of those whom they were supposed to serve and gave it to the leading political parties by making citizens vote for the party, which then decided who to appoint to political posts.

Worse for democracy, the vast majority of “the people” have never had an active interest in how the government and schools are run, preferring instead to be told what to do while they got taken care of from cradle to grave.

Yes, there was corruption under the NP. However, it worsened and became systemic under the ANC, a party whose voters have never given it any reason to change because they voted for it five times in a row so far and are quite likely to do so for the sixth in 2019.

Most of “the people” and the government have no interest in doing the right thing or supporting those who walk on the lonely and dangerous path of righteous behaviour.

If I am wrong about that, then why are the corrupt promoted, while whistleblowers and dissenters are actively hunted and destroyed?

What is happening now with the Basic Education Laws Amendment Bill is insulting, disgusting and possibly illegal, since we were only given one day, and a Friday at that, to read, understand and send comments on it to parliament.

Yet we don’t see marches in the streets in protest at how an attempt to take away parents’ right to have a say about how their kids are educated is being shoved down their throats in an unconstitutional manner.

Oh, there are a lot of statements of outrage from a certain political party and a military trade union about Molefe’s appointment as colonel, threats of charges and so on. Blah, blah.

I know these guys – all they do is speak big words and when called, run from a fight.

Most people, especially generals, politicians and trade union leaders, are cowards who expect others to fight and die for them.

Bemoaning unconstitutional actions, stating the obvious and urging the nation to pray for salvation are well-meaning, but sadly change nothing.

For our country’s story to become something else, the 95% who sit on their behinds must join the 1% who fight for what’s right (the bad guys and gals make up the other 4%).

Then they must hit the streets to demand true representative democracy, that elected representatives be accountable to voters instead of parties, lay criminal charges against every government criminal they see doing bad things.

As for the churches, excommunicate to the corrupt, then make it clear to their families that they’re next if they keep profiting from the corruption of these people.

Fellow citizens, to make real the change you want to see in the world, get off your butts and take back your country!

The lone canary, Port Elizabeth