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When the poor are pawns

THE date is November 26 2009, almost two years after the stubborn Tobacco Pipe Smoking Intellectual was thoroughly trounced in Polokwane.

Tokyo Sexwale, freshly appointed by Dr Machine Gun Man as human settlements minister, stands up in front of an enthusiastic gathering during a "human settlements social contract plenary session" in Boksburg, where they have been eagerly waiting for the triumphant Sexwale to tell them what they want to hear.

"The overall task of human settlements is about housing for all South Africans," an inspired and pumped-up Sexwale tells them. "Our ministry or department takes responsibility for rural housing development, the regulation of home building standards, social housing initiatives, the provision of subsidies, and the development of rental stock. However, the bulk of our work is the provision of housing for the poor. We cannot turn our backs on the poor. Poverty is not of their making."

The oratory is followed by a deafening round of applause.

Fast-forward to September 26 2011, halfway through his first five-year term as minister of human settlements, and several months after he was implicated in a plot to topple his erstwhile ally, Dr Machine Gun Man.

The bored and tired-looking Sexwale addresses a conference on international housing and home warranty in a larney venue in Cape Town, away from the poor.

Says he: "The solution (to the housing crisis) will come not from free housing. There has to be a cut-off date for discussing that. But we can't cut off the poor right now, particularly in the current national economic environment. We can't sustain what we are doing for a long time."

The oratory is followed by a whimper.

Look now who wants to turn his back on the poor, and even thinks of cutting them off.

J for Joy

GULUVA receives a lot of cellphone text messages on a daily basis, most of which instantaneously find themselves at the mercy of the delete button. But he could not resist the temptation of sharing the following one with you:

"They say the best names start with the letter "J", like Jehovah. When He wanted to choose the father of His people, He opted for Jacob.

"To bless Jacob's children, He chose Joseph. To lead His people to the Promised Land, He chose Joshua.

"When He wanted to save Nineveh, He sent Jonah. To save the world He sent John the Baptist to prepare the way for Jesus, the son of Joseph, who came from the tribe of Judah and who lived in Jerusalem."

No wonder Jacob and Julius are ruling our beloved Mzansi today.

Thanks for nothing

GULUVA is impressed with the way the newly elected general secretary of the Ain't Seen Nothing Yet's kindergarten, Sindiso Magaqa, is quickly learning the ropes of politics.

With the head prefect, the Woodwork Boy aka Juju, in the dog box, it was left to Magaqa to announce the kindergarten's decision to strip the powers of its provincial leadership in KwaZulu-Natal.

Asked at a press conference what this radical move meant in the greater scheme of things, Magaqa neatly responded: "It means they have no powers."

Guluva is tempted to say to the youth leader: "Thanks for nothing, Sindiso."

E-mail Guluva on: thatha.guluva@gmail.com

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