This month, millions of people will visit voting stations to make their mark and have their say.
In an attempt to influence who we’ll be voting for, parties and their politicians have been waving from buses, kissing babies, making promises, slinging mud and playing all sorts of cards.
But they’re not the only ones with something to say.
Us ordinary folk no longer seem content to limit our opinion to making a cross on an election ballot – possibly because what we have to say is a little more complicated than a simple ‘I think YOU should be in power’.
As much as we have cause for celebration, given two decades of constitutional democracy, we also have cause for concern.
Our voices appear to be drowned out by spin doctors and ministers, who would rather blame devils and demons for making mischief, than acknowledge the real cause of unrest.
Authors and actors and artists and such, already an opinionated bunch, appear to have turned up the heat this time around.
Opinions are being voiced, concerns raised, and messages of condemnation, courage and hope declared through theatrical productions, artwork and various events.
The city’s creative community is speaking loud and clear.
If we are to survive, never mind thrive, as a nation, we need to act wisely, and we need to act now.
May we not be blind and deaf to our reality or to our power.
The time for timid, selfish little things is over.
