Throughout our 23 years of democracy there has been outright and open corruption by government officials who have been mandated to develop this country.

We have seen the privileges given to some individuals to manage the affairs of the country being misused, abused and dynasties created. Some have enriched themselves and their cronies and in turn the very people who have elected them to serve have been neglected.

It is a frustrating scenario on repeat, with nothing being done to alleviate the bias and abuse of authority by some government officials.

We must agree that it is unfair to see educated individuals with the right qualifications looking for jobs, but not getting them due to nepotism. With our healthcare sector and tertiary education under intense scrutiny, we must anticipate more is yet to come.

We must rapidly come up with solutions to our problems such as crime, unemployment, poverty and healthcare, as they are all vital in the development of our country.

Furthermore, I want to see this country flourish and not diminish due to corrupt politicians becoming heads of government. I want to see our justice system being fair to all, but for this to happen we must first put - without a doubt in our minds - the right persons in place to run our country.

We have seen well-mannered, educated and humble individuals turn to quite the opposite as soon as they enter into politics or enter into government. This is what our country has become, normal individuals in suits and ties who are seemingly above the law and above the people of this country.

We must stop government officials from becoming rich through government. We need to focus on true development and not be fooled by the lackadaisical work being done by individuals we ourselves put in power.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely, and if we fail to plan then consequently we plan to fail.

Naazneen Motala,

Sherwood, Durban