That South Africa is in a political mess everyone can now see.
Foreign embassies have begun to warn their citizens to be careful when visiting what used to be a promising country - South Africa.
When that happens, you must know a country is gone. All thinking South Africans can see that Jacob Zuma and Gwede Mantashe have not only lost control of the ANC, but the country as well.
Mantashe is a sad case; you feel sorry for him on TV trying desperately to convince us that he is still in charge. He calls ANC members "hooligans".
This is while ordinary members in Tshwane defy Luthuli House openly. The police are now used not to fight crime, but to douse ANC fires.
We ordinary citizens care less about the ANC consuming itself. Our main concern is when the chaos spills out to disturb our lives. This is why we must begin a serious conversation about how to save our country.
The starting point of such a discussion must be to accept that the chaos in the ANC will not stop any time soon. The patronage stakes are too high.
The second, melancholy acceptance must be that things will get worse before they get better.
Many more people in KwaZulu-Natal and elsewhere will be killed in a fight for positions. If you want to live long, please avoid a position in the ANC, or hire an army of bodyguards. But then what will happen to our beloved country?
In the end, South Africa will be saved by a group of brave individuals. Such individuals must be people of high ethical grounding.
The individuals must be imbued with a deep sense of patriotism, loving their country more than themselves.
Such a group must not be elitist, for anything that is plotted in Sandton without a strong connection to the practical lives of poor South Africans in the townships and rural areas shall not succeed.
The purpose must not be to protect elite interests, but to stabilise and lead the country to a place where the poor begin to see improvements in their daily lives.
They must encourage ordinary citizens to work hard and succeed.
People must be told there is no short cut in life.
The emphasis must be on education and entrepreneurship, for nothing else in the long run will improve the lot of South Africans without these two ingredients.
The leaders themselves must be educated. This will sharpen brains to grasp complex concepts and processes of modern governance in a world that is becoming ever more complicated.
The fundamental question the individuals must answer is: What kind of a country will South Africa be in 50 years, and what must be done today to get to a better future? The individuals must be honest enough to make South Africans understand that people's lives will not improve in a day.
South Africans must understand that it takes time for a country to turn around, especially after the kind of damage caused by Jacob Zuma.
If the individuals are honest people, they will be trusted. But if they are knaves, no one will trust them.
The blessing is that South Africans are credulous people: look at how they were quick to trust Julius Malema, the man who owed SARS millions of rands without having worked a single day.
The individuals we are referring to must be morally firm. They must be prepared to arrest all previous politicians who looted money from the state. This would include smoking the Guptas out of Dubai, to come back and rot in our jails for defiling our state.
And then the critical question: Where will such individuals come from? They may or may not come from current political parties.
If they come from current political parties, they must be prepared to launch a sophisticated campaign to gain full control of their party.
Their challenge will be to flush agents of chaos out of their party.
This is no easy task. You can be killed. It would be better if the individuals came from society, not having been part of the messy world of our political parties.
This would give them enough space to design their own political vehicles, without being hamstrung by dodgy elements that are already in charge of parties.
All this might sound like a pipe dream, but those who have studied history know that something of this kind is not far-fetched.
Did Deng Xiaoping not turn China around, or Lee Kuan Yew Singapore?
It is possible we might not see this in our lifetime. But the first step in that direction is to make ordinary citizens believe that they can save South Africa. Idealism is the best motor for positive change.
SA is in a big political mess and everyone can see
That South Africa is in a political mess everyone can now see.
Foreign embassies have begun to warn their citizens to be careful when visiting what used to be a promising country - South Africa.
When that happens, you must know a country is gone. All thinking South Africans can see that Jacob Zuma and Gwede Mantashe have not only lost control of the ANC, but the country as well.
Mantashe is a sad case; you feel sorry for him on TV trying desperately to convince us that he is still in charge. He calls ANC members "hooligans".
This is while ordinary members in Tshwane defy Luthuli House openly. The police are now used not to fight crime, but to douse ANC fires.
We ordinary citizens care less about the ANC consuming itself. Our main concern is when the chaos spills out to disturb our lives. This is why we must begin a serious conversation about how to save our country.
The starting point of such a discussion must be to accept that the chaos in the ANC will not stop any time soon. The patronage stakes are too high.
The second, melancholy acceptance must be that things will get worse before they get better.
Many more people in KwaZulu-Natal and elsewhere will be killed in a fight for positions. If you want to live long, please avoid a position in the ANC, or hire an army of bodyguards. But then what will happen to our beloved country?
In the end, South Africa will be saved by a group of brave individuals. Such individuals must be people of high ethical grounding.
The individuals must be imbued with a deep sense of patriotism, loving their country more than themselves.
Such a group must not be elitist, for anything that is plotted in Sandton without a strong connection to the practical lives of poor South Africans in the townships and rural areas shall not succeed.
The purpose must not be to protect elite interests, but to stabilise and lead the country to a place where the poor begin to see improvements in their daily lives.
They must encourage ordinary citizens to work hard and succeed.
People must be told there is no short cut in life.
The emphasis must be on education and entrepreneurship, for nothing else in the long run will improve the lot of South Africans without these two ingredients.
The leaders themselves must be educated. This will sharpen brains to grasp complex concepts and processes of modern governance in a world that is becoming ever more complicated.
The fundamental question the individuals must answer is: What kind of a country will South Africa be in 50 years, and what must be done today to get to a better future? The individuals must be honest enough to make South Africans understand that people's lives will not improve in a day.
South Africans must understand that it takes time for a country to turn around, especially after the kind of damage caused by Jacob Zuma.
If the individuals are honest people, they will be trusted. But if they are knaves, no one will trust them.
The blessing is that South Africans are credulous people: look at how they were quick to trust Julius Malema, the man who owed SARS millions of rands without having worked a single day.
The individuals we are referring to must be morally firm. They must be prepared to arrest all previous politicians who looted money from the state. This would include smoking the Guptas out of Dubai, to come back and rot in our jails for defiling our state.
And then the critical question: Where will such individuals come from? They may or may not come from current political parties.
If they come from current political parties, they must be prepared to launch a sophisticated campaign to gain full control of their party.
Their challenge will be to flush agents of chaos out of their party.
This is no easy task. You can be killed. It would be better if the individuals came from society, not having been part of the messy world of our political parties.
This would give them enough space to design their own political vehicles, without being hamstrung by dodgy elements that are already in charge of parties.
All this might sound like a pipe dream, but those who have studied history know that something of this kind is not far-fetched.
Did Deng Xiaoping not turn China around, or Lee Kuan Yew Singapore?
It is possible we might not see this in our lifetime. But the first step in that direction is to make ordinary citizens believe that they can save South Africa. Idealism is the best motor for positive change.
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