Scrambled workbooks, government on the rocks

The issue is not new, yet we have leading stories on it.

Many schools around the country have been without books, desks and even chalkboards for a long period, today though we act shocked and feel betrayed on discovering textbooks dumped and burnt.  

The failing rate in public schools has been a problem when Nelson Mandela was in prison, and when he came out. We were singing the same tune even when Thabo Mbeki was president, yet we seem to unwrap it as a new dawn in this Zuma era.

Hypocrites much?

We are excited at breaking the ice with our lovers in bed by conversing about how the system is a joke, along being blinded by newspapers and media houses that make money out of getting us to see what they want us to see, forgetting that we are on the grassroots.  We are the victims.

Hence we live to tell the actual effects of not having textbooks at schools. Still, we nod every morning at the sight of the same leading stories in the news.

Opposing parties have sound stands. In fact, up until recently, they represented the masses by raising questions otherwise citizens would never be able to ask. However, they too seem to be caught up in agreeing that Angie Motshekga and her office failed.

Haven’t we had enough about knowing what went wrong?  At what stage will we tackle solutions?

No. Firing Motshekga is not an elucidation. We all know our current government does not really fire under-performing servants nor does it arrest the guilty. Then why bother?

The government has never been able to do things independently. I would like to believe that is why Mbeki emphasised on the Vuk' uzenzele concept in 2002/3. Therefore, private businesses, individuals and NGOs must take action towards preventing an issue that will ruin my younger brother’s life and the rest of young South Africans who cannot be able to act on their own.

Of course, if my brother is the only one victimised by the issue of lack of resources in schools, then let this be my call and mine alone to deal with. Otherwise, entirely efforts are needed in all nine provinces.

South Africans need to stop talking and carping about issues that will never discontinue any time soon. Not suggesting violence in any way, instead one must do something that could help the two people next-door. Hopefully, the two will help five people each. That way we are truly working together to enhance the lives of our fellow community members.

This time, the issue might have ascended through Limpopo, but the Eastern Cape has been suffering for many years. What about the other provinces? Someone probe into the matter.

I am not merely urging people to read how messy our education system is on this blog, I am working on an initiative that will help my brother escape the bosh system we have in this country. In addition, 25 more needy students will benefit from my idea.

Of course, the intention is to inspire all of them to work hard and end up helping 25 more suffering souls each, just like I would have done.

What are you doing about this problem?

Happy read!

Our government, whose art is in promises

Just like any other year and like any other president who seeks popularity, President Jacob Zuma stated, in this year’s State Of The Nation Address, that 2011 is a year of job creation. Already the Department of Public Service and Administration website is flooded by vacancies awaiting potential employees to compete for them.

The private sector on the other hand, meeting the government halfway it seems, is doing what it can to assist in the scarcity of jobs. As a result, websites like Bizcommunity, Pnet, Career junction and recruitment agencies are buzzing with what seems to be opportunities for the unemployed.

But how does the process of getting employed work? Is it really possibly to eradicate the ever increasing rate of unemployment in South Africa or we are merely trying to hit a Mariah Carey note with Mary j Blige’s voice?

Laying a complaint

Ever since my mind grew to understand what is uttered by SA presidents, I have been grasping what a normal mind would only dub empty promises; abolition of crime, alleviation of poverty through youth and women empowerment projects, building of houses, yada yada BEE, yada yada bursaries for well deserving students and so forth. All these declarations never seem to be met, well at least NOT entirely.

Having said that, every erudite and scholarly mind, in my opinion, is well aware of the government’s failure to stick to promises. However, we all still lift our hopes and hands up high as if we are welcoming Jesus into our lives, knowing fully that nothing will come out of it.

Consequently, all we do is complain about what the government is NOT doing right FOR us. It appears, our minds have forgotten about Mr Thabo Mbeki’s Vukuzenzele initiative (wake up and do it yourself). Yes, this was mainly invented for the struggling farmers, but that did not mean that a struggling young man in the impoverished Tsomo area, in the Eastern Cape, should just wait for Mbeki to speak to him directly.

The government is at work. The government is delivering. The government is sorting out crime but this is ONLY benefiting certain people in certain areas.

The government is doing all that is possible to get rid of poverty, but this is only experienced by a certain number of people (including the corrupt vultures, of course). Also, the BEE concept is working, but not for every black person who qualifies will get to taste how it feels to a BEE employee.

What does this mean?

First and for most, it does not matter how hard the government lifts up weight in an aim to help and feed the hungry, shield the homeless and comfort the unemployable; it is just impossible to cater for everyone.

There will always be that portion or a number of people who will be poor, who will be unemployed, who will be victims of crime till the world comers to an end.

It is about time people quit looking up to government and expecting a love song to begin after screaming VIVA!

Chairs are fine right next to the table. Leave them for toddlers to lean on when trying to walk, and go out to start something that will bring you money.

Many projects are already in motions in many areas. So, don’t start your own because then as it will take ages to pick up. Get involved in the projects that already exist. Use your talent and what you good at.

Being good does NOT only refer to making the kinkiest moves when having sex; it refers to how you sing, how you dance, the way you draw, the way you cook and the ways herd cows or help build houses for the people in your community.

Not everyone will have a degree or a diploma. Not everyone with qualifications will get a job. So, one MUST do with what is do-able and available right now.

The truth is, you are the ONLY person who solely cares for yourself genuinely. The other people are using you as a ladder for themselves or their businesses. Why don’t you try and be like them then? Use them to grow yourself.

By the way, I hear the world is coming to an end next year, why don’t you start doing something for yourself? Go out and START a job.

Happy read!

Precision as I see it

South Africa is a very beautiful country and that is a fact. From looking at it with the naked eye to experiencing our moody weather, feeling the beauty and warmth of its people and enjoying their company.

This country is rich. We have soil that produces and supplies many countries not only with crops, but with gold and wine too. We have a very diverse culture; a rainbow nation out of which result legends and the most amazing people.

We are talented. There is nothing anyone from any other country can do that we cannot do. In many cases, we do things better because we have our rich history that inspires our creativity and we have hungry minds, hence we grasp information and often make use of it by not only enriching South Africans, but everyone else from beyond the borders as well.

We have the best of good hearts. When our neighbouring countries are facing tough times, we intervene. We offer help and we get down to taking on hard labour; just as long as it is going to help the other people.

When Haiti was faced with a fatal earthquake that left thousands of people dead, South Africa was amongst the states that took on the responsibility to help. When an internal quarrel arose within the Zimbabwean cabinet, our own Thabo Mbeki had to act as a mediator, as a result, we now see cordial relations between opposing parties, despite the permanent profound hatred that will forever remain.

Like any other beautiful creature, of course, we possess a bad side. Unfortunately, when the bad in us surfaces, all the beauty and the goodness in us vanishes. Consequently, many dub us many negative things while we see deeper dark spots in ourselves too.

Sadly, in seeing predicaments within our own fabric of society, we tend to disagree with each other which is a process that usually result to incarnations that merely segregate us with the same tools we use to join our forces against any external rival; race, gender, ability and sexuality.

Discussing solutions appears to be easy to us, those who see the cabinet via television and stadiums. We tend to assume –and sometimes believe- that our government is lazy to sort out issues. What makes people like me see things this way really?

Our public officials lie. They refuse to admit to failure in any case. Instead, they produce confusing statistic figures that leave me –who left mathematics in Grade 7- blinking a million times. These figures never sit well with my tasting buds.

Our government comprises corrupt individuals who see money and instantly think of illegal tender dealings, bribery and impish expenditure of taxpayers’ hard-earned cash, while their salaries sit to grow mould in their Swiss bank accounts.

Are they to blame? Yes. Yes, because they promised to work for the benefit of the public by developing and implementing strategies that will see many uneducated people getting jobs, sick and frail poor people getting the necessary help they need and the existence of humanity, unity and love between men and women, children and elders, blacks and whites, gays and straight people, able people and those who are challenged; physically, mentally and otherwise.

Of course, government alone cannot do anything. Just like citizens could never succeed without the help of the government. This is where things begin to shape up, and everyone know and understands this simple concept. But, is it exercised? No.

That is why many people – in and outside the government - throw tantrums that leave many of us bending trying to pick up our jaws from the floor.  From the likes of Julius Malema who pride himself with uttering discriminatory statements about women and people of opposing parties, to Steve Hofmeyr and Annelie Botes who express their dislike of the Black race in public forums citing to be stating their views the only way they know how.

That is why families are betrayed. They send their children to schools and entrust them in the hands of men and women who vowed to act as parents to them, whereas disgusting acts of children having sex and using drugs takes place right in their yards, with many other children watching while some entertain themselves by capturing such events on videos.

If it’s not such, gay people excuse their laziness by blaming homophobia, black South Africans exploit and discriminate against other black people from neighbouring countries (from the same countries that sheltered some of our politicians during the apartheid regime), men engage in sexual activities with young girls promising them the world while the reap their viginas apart and certain women create plots to kill their partners just for the love of money.

No one knows better, but when our minds work together we become better. Even with these incidents, we are able to and we can sort things out just by quitting the selfish motives we carry within us when dealing with each other.

As a black person, I need to know and learn to accept my faults. I need to understand that, the world does not owe me anything. In fact, I need to get up and work hard to accomplish my dreams. I need to understand and believe that I am capable of becoming what I want to become. I need to have it instilled in my mind that I am talented and all that the other person can do, I can do better. Also, I need to drop the hatred, fear and intimidation I get when I come across a white person. However, I need to understand that, if I express discriminatory statements about people of other races, I am racist.

The same applies for Coloureds, Indians, Whites and Chinese.

We go around saying we are proudly South Africans. It is about time now we prove that by working towards building a rainbow nation just like we had claimed we were since 1994.

Branding t-shirts with hearts is not enough.

Happy read!