OPINION: There is nothing to celebrate on Freedom Day
Well-known author and resident is of the view that Freedom Day has lost its meaning, as many South Africans still face inequality, corruption and economic exclusion decades into democracy.
• Thabile Mange writes:
April 27 marks Freedom Day. The pertinent question is: 32 years after our hard-earned democracy, are we free? The answer is no. Hence, there is no more hype about this important day in our calendar. Instead, there is despair and hopelessness in our country.
We thought freedom would bring us quality education, plenty of jobs, economic growth and development. Instead, it has brought us corruption, poverty, crime, and high unemployment, and a better life for a few, in contrast to what we were promised.
South Africa is now a mafia state. Cabinet ministers and police top brass are in the pockets of criminal syndicates. In other words, criminals are running this country. On the other hand, whistleblowers are killed instead of being protected.
Also read: OPINION: Why March 21 should remain Sharpeville Day
BEE is supposed to empower black people economically. However, it is an ANC economic empowerment tool. I believe the president is a beneficiary of BEE, and he is filthy rich. The same applies to other ANC comrades and those connected to the party. That’s why they don’t want to scrap this selective empowerment policy.
The government has also cut budgets for education and health, saying there is no money. Yet Parliament is obese, with some ministries having two deputy ministers who are doing absolutely nothing. Is that fair?
Cadre deployment has proven to be an enemy of progress. Some government departments are led by unqualified comrades or individuals. These individuals lack vision and strategic thinking, yet they earn big fat cheques.
The majority of people in this country are experiencing a different apartheid in the form of economic exclusion. Opportunities are given to the politically connected. In essence, our liberators have become our oppressors. There is nothing worse than being oppressed by your own.
Truth is: There is nothing to celebrate on Freedom Day. The ANC has squandered an opportunity to liberate the poor masses. Their focus is on amassing riches, not on liberating the poor masses. The more things change, the more they remain the same.
