Nelson Mandela would be appalled at the squandering of time and resources, goodwill and community, educational and economic opportunities which he facilitated through his lifelong struggle to engender unity and equality amongst the people of South Africa, having engineered a peaceful transition to majority rule, thereby leaving all these resources in tact and in the hands of the previously disadvantaged.
The South African economy was the strongest in Africa when Mandela came to power and when he relinquished power.
It's military was the most formidable with home grown high technology weapons unmatched by other countries with exports across the globe of G5 Field Guns, Rooi Falk Attack helicopters, Ratels, Buffels and innovative specialist technologies applicable to guerrilla warfare, antipersonnel and intelligence and counter-intelligence.
Its social security, which would be considered nonexistent by comparison with US standards, was the best in Africa. It's economy was supreme. It's education sought after, although racially unequal, schools all had the resources to operate unlike today.
South Africa was a leader in medical technology with world firsts and world renowned figures such as Chris Barnard and the first heart transplant and Dr BG Grobbelaar and his work on the Rhesus factor.
Parliamentarians have an incredible array of criminal offenses to their names, collectively. The president alone has over 700 unresolved charges against him. Whether trumped up or legitimate they are an impediment to good governance.
The Health Minister has just declared the National Heath organisation to be in utter chaos and stated that it will have to be completely revamped.
Education levels have plummeted as competent teachers have been ousted and replaced with incompetent, unreliable and unqualified teachers. Major changes in the education systems over the last 2 decades have failed miserably at incredible expense with current pass rates only maintained by lowering the standard of education to levels never seen in the country. Failed systems being replaced with more expensive and less effective implementations.
The police force is renowned for corruption. I do not know people who do not claim to have had at least one police officer attempt bribery. This is a phenomenon unheard of two decades ago.
Police are reported to be involved in sex rings, drug trafficking, murder, armed robbery, hijackings, taxi-wars, abductions and every conceivable crime.
The country's credit rating has been reduced to junk status by three independent rating organisations. The nation has been informed that tax payers should not expect tax refund payments any time soon. The national coffers are claimed to be empty and the economy is in dire straights, propped up, it is claimed by an Investec Bank representative, by foreign capital injection during the current financial year, which currently obscures the truth, which is that the government cannot raise funds anywhere, restricted as it is to local sources which have proved unwilling, as it may not borrow internationally, and this situation may well result in economic collapse in the coming year.
The problems in each of these governmental departments are not just at the rock-face either but there are charges and concerns pertaining to corruption at the highest levels, around the president and state capture, The South African Revenue Service, Eskom, the South African Broadcasting Corporation, the South African Defense Force and South Africa Airways, national mining concerns, the national policing and military institutions and the country's premiership as well.
Racial tensions increase as contentious politics has grown out of the success of the official opposition in capturing a large share of previously exclusive ANC electorate and resultant coalitions in local government.
Divisions in the ruling party have resulted in the emergence of the EFF with its radical militarist stance threatening militant action against the ruling party and the white population.
Claims of local government corruption in usurping power are now surfacing.
The phenomenal success of Nelson Mandela who prepared and executed a plan for peaceful change like no other man ever, has been dishonoured as his beloved ANC is unable to remove their president who is considered by many to be the most corrupt president ever, and is currently under investigation by for collusion in selling the country's governance to the Gupta family in a state capture debacle.
The South African Constitutional Court has RULED that a secret ballot no-confidence vote may be taken and a date has been set for the 3 August 2017. This development is highly significant and it is time to pray for the future of the country as the powers that be decide the fate of the people.
Information provided in this article is gleaned from interviews with Nelson Mandela, Jacob Zuma and others referred to, available on public media, and articles and news reports on various media channels and are not expressed as the views of this author.
Images from Wikipedia and Google images, labelled for reuse.
