A snippet on SAFM’s morning show recently caught my attention, and got me thinking.
In it, a UKZN student put forward the argument that perhaps the security company on campus had deliberately set its own offices and other satellite buildings alight to bolster its own cause, in other words to entrench its position as a service provider.
ALSO READ : Good Business Basics: Patience with empty promises is wearing thin
Even if one were to disregard for the moment the swathe of destruction students at various campuses have cut over the past few years, (actions that they have not disavowed or tried to pin on other culprits incidentally), this postulation vividly illustrates the stark culture of accountability avoidance that pervades the actions of protestors whenever their actions lead to destruction of property or injury or death to persons.
Rogue forces
How many times have we heard union representatives toss out the ‘criminal element’ or ‘rogue forces’ red herring to defend trashing or destruction of infrastructure during their marches?
It would seem that either tertiary institutions are great training grounds for when students join the organised workforce, or they are just learning from their peers.
The default to violence in almost all public protests, be they by workers, students or communities is an alarming trend.
There are few amongst us who would seek to curtail the right of free expression through peaceful protests and demonstrations.
Loss of life is almost a given in these situations, and the apparent inability or unwillingness of the security services, and/or the courts to hold perpetrators to account, even in the face of incontrovertible evidence, has emboldened organisers and participants.
Charged
Almost 10 years after the strike in the security industry that resulted in over 50 deaths, not a single party has been charged.
The burning down of Eskom buildings during protest action by workers a few years ago was directly linked to union members acting under the instruction of union leaders and resulted in a mere slap on the wrist in the form of a fine for the offending parties.
In the past few days, graphic WhatsApp messages, purportedly put out by senior South African Municipal Workers Union officials in our district, incited members to bodily violence and death against those opposed to the strike (heatedly denied as ‘propaganda’ and misinformation by the union) brought this situation to our doorstep.
Peaceful
How much more impactful would a peaceful protest, against whatever the issue at hand is, be, were it not sullied by acts of intimidation, destruction of property, violence or worse.
All such acts serve is to bolster the case for those calling for the curtailment of a hard-fought right that is the cornerstone of a dynamic democratic society.
After matriculating, Vijay Naidoo studied Economics in the UK. Upon his return, he joined the family construction business as MD for 10 years.
He subsequently joined his sister in their furniture manufacturing business as director for quality assurance and operations. He was responsible for all quality aspects of their products, and led the project to the business achieving an ISO 9000 quality accreditation. As an export focused business, this was important for our international competitiveness.
Mr Naidoo has an abiding interest in quality management and productivity improvement, particularly in manufacturing.
More recently, he has focused a lot of his time on giving back to the community by way of mentorship of small businesses. He also sits on the Board of the Ugu South Coast Development Agency.
HAVE YOUR SAY
Like the South Coast Herald’s Facebook page, follow us on Twitter and Instagram
To receive our FREE email newsletter, click HERE
