The government seems to either really misunderstand or overestimate their status: they were elected by the people to rule for the people. They were never elected to own it or steal it out of bankruptcy. The ruling party was elected to take charge of the government and practice good governance for the benefit of all citizens. Good governance requires sound strategies, coherent financial management policies and practices, strong servant leadership, resources, national unity and oversight. People who suddenly find themselves in possession of something they never worked for do not appreciate or care about their sudden “possession”. This belief became very evident….
The government seems to either really misunderstand or overestimate their status: they were elected by the people to rule for the people.
They were never elected to own it or steal it out of bankruptcy. The ruling party was elected to take charge of the government and practice good governance for the benefit of all citizens.
Good governance requires sound strategies, coherent financial management policies and practices, strong servant leadership, resources, national unity and oversight.
People who suddenly find themselves in possession of something they never worked for do not appreciate or care about their sudden “possession”.
This belief became very evident in SA where the government behaved like a spoiled brat and destroyed and ruined the country after taking it over.
However, it is the property of the government, not the entire country, its population and resources. Also, it’s a trust, not a “lifetime” tenure.
People who have worked for the property or trust of others should know that it is all about accountability and responsibility.
It also requires a healthy dose of integrity. When honor is trampled and trust is broken, property can be taken away.
ALSO READ: Outa urges SIU to be ruthless in probing water board corruption
As for honesty, apparently there is none in our ruling party. But honor and trust, like everything in life, are not free.
Acquiring these noble qualities requires hard work, integrity, faith and trust, and once achieved, more work is required to maintain them.
After destruction, honor, integrity, and trust do not simply return. People can forgive, but rarely forget – especially when leaders refuse to fix what they broke, broke, trampled on.
The power that is in the hands of our government is now in the hands of those they have abused, marginalized, neglected, ignored and driven to despair.
Having used their power for their own gain, the overpaid honorable ministers and their huge coterie may find themselves powerless in the 2024 elections.
No amount of militant populism, fake history, race-baiting and recriminations should save them from the damage they have done to our country and our people.
By abusing their position and spreading anger and marginalization, they pushed us toward civil war or our own “South African Spring,” as I wrote in my May 24 op-ed.
Using mobster tactics, they sought to consolidate their power and redirect a once-thriving economy into a socialist-inspired state collapse.
Not content with preaching “revolution” to achieve their goal, they defy larger and more powerful powers and side with rogue states.
Their lack of understanding of how the world works and the influence of geopolitics is truly amazing and frightening. They live in complete isolation from the grim reality of life that they have inflicted on us all.
They have betrayed both South Africa and Africa and are constantly feeding us new lies for the old, mistakenly believing that we will be tricked into voting for them again. Words like “progress,” “industrial revolution,” “job creation,” etc., are used simply as platitudes.
After taking over the government of South Africa, they apparently had only two desires: to destroy the country and to bankrupt it.
They never believed there could be consequences or repercussions as they specifically wrote laws and policies that they could bypass to protect themselves. Responsible managers understand the concept of ownership.
Irresponsible managers do not do this. Just as a car needs care and regular maintenance, so a country needs care and management.
Neither the people nor the taxpayers benefit from the current care – or rather neglect.
Although they temporarily own the government, the ruling party does not own the country or its people.
Likewise, they do not own the fiscus, although they see it as a giant personal ATM at their disposal.
While they may claim ownership of the government, this claim is only on behalf of the voters and should be short-lived.
However, having been exposed as a criminal cartel, it is not surprising that the ruling party has used its misguided “ownership” to allow rampant crime to infect the country.
Nor is it surprising that the ruling party intends to disarm all legal gun owners while allowing their fellow criminals to operate unhindered or without fear of resistance. v Mashaba is a political adviser
