Going to have a good old rant, it has been a while. For all the new people – this happens every now and then, I have a really good self-righteous rant about something. Don’t be scared and always remember that I always have one aim for all my emails – to make you think. (And apologies to everyone overseas, this is addressed to the local South Africans)
And what better to rant about than the recent load-shedding and Jacob Zuma as the next president. People keep telling me that the country is in big trouble, that Eskom’s woes are a major problem and will spell the end of our economy, and that when Zuma becomes president he is going to run the country further into the ground. Time to leave, time to get out while you can! Do I agree that South Africa is in big trouble? Yes, I do absolutely. We have major issues that threaten our stability, happiness and future prospects. Complicated issues that will take a very long time to solve. These issues however are NOT Eskom or Zuma. They are not new issues either.
So what are the real issues?
- A high unemployment rate – between 20% to 30% of the workforce is unemployed, that is more than 4 million people.
- Large inequalities between the rich and the poor within the country – an estimated 50% of the population live below the poverty line, yet the average earnings per person are more than $10000 (R80000) per annum. These inequalities also extend to South Africa’s relations to its neighbouring countries – our economy is five and a half times larger than the combined economies of our 6 bordering neighbours.
- A lack of land ownership amongst the rural poor – government is struggling to meet its goal of 30% black ownership of agricultural land by 2014. At the end of apartheid, about 1% of the population owned all the agricultural land.
These are the issues that matter, these are the issues that the majority of South Africans face everyday. Unfortunately the media and the privileged minority seemed to have lost sight of these issues and just bitch and complain about the signs and symptoms – high crime, too many beggars at the robots, high HIV prevalence and Zuma becoming ANC president. Why should the rich care? Why aren’t the poor more thankful that at least some people are making the economy grow? As our leaders constantly remind us, we cannot survive as an island of prosperity in a sea of poverty. Does it not bother you that 50% of the country live below the poverty line? What if those 20 million people decided that they are sick of empty promises and took direct charge of a massive wealth redistribution programme?
So here is my rant. Stop predicting how Jacob Zuma is going to ruin our country, because if he lives up to his reputation he may make great strides in addressing the issues of poverty and inequality. At the very least he will be more approachable and sympathetic towards the majority of our population than Mbeki has been. Stop complaining about load-shedding at your home and think instead of the thousands of miners whose jobs may be in jeopardy due to power constraints. Think of the impact a lower GDP growth rate will have on addressing the issue of unemployment. Turn your geyser off so that someone out there might get to keep their job. Stop complaining that the government are doing a terrible job and are wrecking the country – South Africa has had a positive growth rate for more than a decade, and even with load-shedding we are still going to have a positive growth rate this year. Could the government do a better job? Most certainly! But they are NOT doing a terrible job and they are NOT wrecking the country.
As for fleeing the country. Why? Where are you going to go? Are the issues I listed above a surprise to you? If they are, then seriously you need to learn more about South Africa! These were bigger issues in 1995, we have made a little bit of progress in addressing them since then. And if you really can’t stand South Africa’s problems any more, I highly recommend you move to America. You will get to enjoy a probable recession this year (ie. negative economic growth), load-shedding in Washington DC with the added bonus of high electricity prices (Threat of Power Shortages Generating New Urgency if you don’t believe me), rising inequality, rising illiteracy rates, rising poverty, high levels of gun violence, a current president who has real experience in wrecking countries, racism, xenophobia, etc. A far better place than South Africa.
17 responses so far ↓
1 Michele Carpenter // Feb 19, 2008 at 1:18 am
Nothing like the occasional rant from you. I have to say that I actually found it very uplifting, because this week I’ve been wondering What Pete Would Do? Two of our more positive friends have been talking seriously about emigrating this week, and we hear all the moaning you’ve mentioned below. Bayne and I both said that if we heard you were Packing for Perth we’d know things were really going downhill. So like I said, I found your rant encouraging.
It’s a bit self righteous for me, sitting on my little island, to stop people complaining about load shedding and potholes, but I share your sentiments that the same people are not outraged about how many people still live without electricity or paved roads. I agree that certain people probably aren’t doing their jobs properly (Eskom Board, Department of Public Works, or whoever it is that tars roads), but things weren’t so rosy 10 years ago (or 20/30/40/50 years ago either), when the infrastructure across the country was developed for the wealthy few, and virtually non-existent for everyone else.
Incidentally, I was having a look at the CIA world factbook last night, and noted that they say that 20% of Bermuda’s population live below the poverty line. Not sure where this line is exactly, but since you don’t see any kids walking 10 miles barefoot to school, and the homeless few chose this lifestyle, I struggle to think that 20% is a realiable stat. I thought the poverty line was living on less than a $1 a day. Even the 5 beggars here manage to beg more than that for their coffee and booze. Just made me wonder how reliable their stats were, especially since a lot of those stats probably rely on local governments, and therefore aren’t comparative.
2 Pete // Feb 19, 2008 at 1:21 am
Glad it uplifted you. I’m getting tired of all the pessimists. Yes Eskom and the government made a monumental stuff-up, but can we recover from it? Most definitely. Have the people in power learnt a valuable lesson? Hopefully yes.
The 50% poverty I used for South Africa was also from the CIA Factbook. That number is based on local governments’ official estimates of poverty and therefore the poverty line varies between countries. Bermuda obviously has set very high standards and so has a higher percentage. Also how much can a beggar in Bermuda buy with a dollar as opposed to South Africa?
3 Andrew Geddes // Feb 19, 2008 at 1:22 am
There has been a general uproar again about the “packing for Perth” brigade, with many views, so I’ll express mine as well.
One of the issues for me is perception. I’m sure there are many countries/places where electricity is an issue, NY has been through it, California goes through it….but for me part of the perception is that it’s in Africa. I’ve done a bit of travelling through Africa and one constant is the lack of stable electricity and water. So for me, that’s what differentiates it. Is it a short term issue, or is it a longer term issue.
It hits a bit close to home. An example, my best mate, his Dad was laid off from Eskom as part of the middle age white male removal. But like all good redundancies, he went back and contracted at double the money. but was stuffed around on several occasions and then stopped working for them. Then they begged for him to come back and contract….several months later, his “company” does not have BEE. So off he goes again. Never to return. So here you have a highly skilled engineer who is making a decent living out of being a handy man. Yet could be helping Eskom resolve the issue. My mates brother in law can earn a better living in New Zealand and have his wife at home looking after the kids, then he did as an electrical engineer at a local council with no promotion prospects. So it’s not just the infrastructure, but it ties into the AA as well.
Being in the UK, I see a lot of Saffas all bashing SA. But a lot of it does come from their pre-1994 lives. Yes, your life may have deteriorated since 1994, but so many’s have got better. It’s not just about you.
On the side, last week I was in a training course - we were talking about Hyperinflation and so many people were shocked to hear of how Zim had a high inflation. It’s something I follow, yet on the world stage, it’s so small. Do people actually care about it?
But I do love SA, Africa will always be a part of me, just not sure where my future is, there is so much of the world out there.
4 Pete // Feb 19, 2008 at 12:09 pm
Yes perceptions indeed. The “South Africa will go the same way as the rest of Africa” crowd is a vocal one. At the slightest hint of trouble they are quick to complain about how we are going to be the next Zimbabwe. Everyone forgets that South Africa hasn’t been going the same way as the rest of Africa for a very long time. What does going the same way as the rest of Africa mean anyway? Africa has been experiencing some of the highest economic growth rates in the world for the last decade. This double standard of it is bad if it is in Africa, but just politics if it is elsewhere stinks. The ANC elects a president who is facing corruption charges and everyone says it will result in the downfall of South Africa. South Korea elects as president a man facing corruption charges and no-one cares. South Africa’s growth starts outstripping its electricity supply and everyone says the economy is going to collapse and the government doesn’t know what it is doing. The very seat of government in America has the identical problem, and people shrug. How can you even begin to compare the lack of water and electricity in say Kinshasa, which is due to a destroyed infrastructure and a complete lack of funds, to South Africa which which is due to poor planning and high growth rates?
One of my friends actually reckons that the power crisis could lead to the scrapping of affirmative action. Skilled workers are no longer a luxury, but a necessity. Government’s absolutely critical goal of achieving 6% GDP growth is now in danger and they might take what ever steps necessary to get back on target – even if this means scrapping affirmative action. Quite honestly government has some great ideas like JIPSA (Joint Initiative on Priority Skills Acquisition) and the Homecoming Revolution which have been atrociously implemented. Attitudes need to be changed, so that people who can get the job done are valued, people from whom you can learn are respected. Perhaps this crisis might cause that to happen. There are so many people out there that do love South Africa, but don’t feel welcome to make any sort of contribution. Wish the government could find a way of harnessing all that positive energy.
People have pretty much given up on Zimbabwe. The hyperinflation is actually completely meaningless now (What does 66000% inflation mean? Every 12 hours the price of goods doubles?!?), basically the currency is worthless now and nothing has changed that can restore confidence in it – bartering and foreign currency are the only way business can be done. Elections are happening soon in Zimbabwe, think it is next month. Maybe something will happen, maybe it won’t… Let’s hope it does. At the very least, I think just about everyone is so sick of Mugabe now (including some of his former cabinet who are running against him), that if the vote is a complete sham, a huge amount of both external and internal pressure will be brought to bear on Mugabe.
5 Sean // Feb 19, 2008 at 3:26 pm
Hey Pete!
Great post!!
Man… I share your view completely, absolutely, 100%.
What a breath of fresh air. I must say, I promote the same sort of attitude / views in my own social circles, and it amazes me that I’m so different to everyone else. Everyone else is so negative, so pessimistic, so self-centered. Whites in SA have so much baggage from apartheid…
But then I read this… and hey! There are others out there!!
I wish more whiteys would adopt a geniune positive attitude. It makes all the difference to me - it really does.
Keep blogging - going to download an RSS reader to subscribe!
6 SA: Run for the hills, the country is falling apart » oneafrikan.com // Feb 19, 2008 at 8:33 pm
[…] post from Peter about what’s going on in SA… recommended reading. _ Run for the hills, the country is falling apart Going to have a good old rant, it has been a while. For all the new people – this happens every […]
7 oneafrikan // Feb 20, 2008 at 9:08 pm
Keep it coming Pete
8 Mike // Apr 8, 2008 at 2:23 pm
Come on give me a break, we are living in a country of lawless, morally decayed, diseased bastards. Just take one look at the “state run” news websites today…
State hit by qualification lies
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2302103,00.html
Journo body slammed over race
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2302079,00.html
Girls raped on way to school
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2302026,00.html
Teen admits raping woman first
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2301959,00.html
‘US returned us to hijack hell’
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2301821,00.html
Broken cop cars line street
http://www.news24.com/News24/South_Africa/News/0,,2-7-1442_2301541,00.html
What a joke, I can go on and on, but whats the point? Keep thinking everything will be better when the rapist is president, and his cronies take power in all sectors. Wake up. This is not a free country, racism is alive and well, and its against whites this time. I don’t even want to think about the future here, because these ignorant, uneducated, nepotists will continue to live with the want of western privileges while having african “values” and that my dear friends has never worked, and never will.
9 Pete // Apr 8, 2008 at 3:27 pm
Yay, my first decent negative comment!
First I’m sure Naspers will be flattered to hear News24 quoted as the definitive “state run” news. The SABC must be heart-broken.
Going to counter with some news stories from around the world:
Top Officials Hold Fake Degrees
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2004/05/10/eveningnews/main616664.shtml
[Journo body slammed over race] Um, not sure what your point is here, Mike. This is a story about how institutions in South Africa are actually addressing injustice.
Man pleads guilty in Tacoma girl’s rape, murder
http://www.katu.com/news/local/17357919.html
Investigator: U.S. soldier poured kerosene on raped, slain Iraqi
http://edition.cnn.com/2006/WORLD/meast/08/07/iraq.familyslain/index.html
Police hunt Geelong rape pack
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2007/05/17/1925959.htm
Man escapes court, hijacks car
http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2005/05/30/1380337.htm
Israel president sex case delayed
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/middle_east/6258132.stm
I’m not trying to deny that South Africa doesn’t have problems - I’m trying to say stop making it seem like the rest of the world is paradise while South Africa is full of “lawless, morally decayed, diseased bastards”. Stop complaining and try doing something about it. You can flee the country if you like, but don’t expect it to be any better elsewhere - in fact you might find it to be worse.
I think you also missed the point in my original post, all the news stories in your comment are about the superficial problems that everyone loves to complain about. Have you given any thought to the true issues South Africa faces (as I listed in my post)? Or are you still focused on your little world?
10 Rolz // May 16, 2008 at 1:39 am
What a load of nonsense… I am in the US and have four kids… I am missing my country and would love to return home. If the US was so bad, why am I here, when I want to be there ? Its simple, who would take their kids back to that violence and lawlesness. Africa is a dark continent, I miss it but will never return.
Anyone who is trying to compare it with the US, is crazy. And with regards the Washington power problems, the govt there is doing something about it and planning for the futura. When the SA govt were informed years ago, in their infinite wizdom, they chose to do nothing.
Please dont be foolish, dont go looking for small problems in the USA and try and compare it with SA. If the US was so perfect they would not need police, but compared with SA, well hang on… I am in the US, so I would prefer not to… compare the US and SA that is.. you see I dont lock my doors, or have burglar bars, and my kids including my 5 year old daughter play out in the streets until 10 some nights.. all perfectly safe.
And just so your wondering, I do understand what your trying to say about the “real issues” in SA…. Wake up, the gangsters in the ANC dont give a damn…. I payed my taxes while I was there, I employed blacks and tried my best to get positivly involved. The ANC is not helping the poor, not protecting them, not empowering them, not giving them healthcare, its a syndrome.. they fought for the freedom, now everything belongs to them, just like that chimp who runs Zim.
11 Pete // May 17, 2008 at 10:08 am
To everyone out there who calls themselves a South African, take a lesson from Rolz. If someone criticises your country – defend it! It is just a pity that Rolz is now an American, because that is the country he is defending. If you can see nothing worth defending in South Africa, then you are no longer a South African.
12 Rolz // May 18, 2008 at 4:29 pm
Pete, you dont make much of a debater !!
I personally love South Africa… but I am not going to live in fear and drive down streets named after Yassir Arrifat !
Any white person that reads this… Please listen to me… I still watch the rugby from here, and long for home…BUT DONT LET YOUR EMOTIONS GET THE BEST OF YOU…. You need to start right now making plans to get out of South Africa. I dont even want to justify my comment. Just take your white kids and DO RUN FOR THE HILLS. its not easy, but you will be glad you did in the end, and dont worry that it takes a year to get an Auz visa, take the money and start the papers.
Pete, you say I am not South African, are you therefore implying that I should have kept my four White children in South Africa so they can live in fear and face BEE and joblessness when they leave school?
You said in your reply that you hope that people are going to take a lesson from me, I hope they do to…. but I want the lesson to be, GET OUT NOW… Despite what you read or hear, actions are louder than words, naming streets after terrorists, electricity not working, roads in a state, state medical is all but a joke, and well crime and the police, what more need I say. It seems your tax money that Trevor is so good at collecting is not really making it beyond the ANC’s personal pockets, why can the ANC not do as well in all departments as it does at collecting Taxes !!!
Pete, I just hope not too many people take your views to heart, remember for each person you make comfortable with the current situation in South Africa, its another human life you are directly responsible for placing in danger !
13 Pete // May 19, 2008 at 6:05 pm
Rolz, you see that is why you are no longer a South African, because you cannot see any potential in South Africa. I cannot debate with you because your mind is made up already and there is nothing that I can say to you to change your mind. If you were a South African you would be able to see the things worth fighting for in South Africa, you would be thinking of solutions to the problems and not just fleeing the problems. I think crime in this country is appalling, that the whole Eskom problem is terrible, but this is the country I love and I am willing to stay and fight for it and what makes it special. And you can compare the US to South Africa, because the government here is also doing something about our power problems and planning for the future. Everyone told Bush that invading Iraq would be a big mistake and would end up being a long term occupation, but he didn’t listen either.
I am not saying to anyone who chooses to stay in South Africa to be comfortable - I am in fact saying the opposite, stay and contribute. Understand the problems and fight to change them. Rolz, by encouraging people to leave South Africa you are the one who is responsible for South Africa’s problems. Every skilled person who leaves is responsible for making 10 people unemployed. Every person who is unwilling to challenge the government and fight for the life they want in South Africa is just allowing the problems to persist. My fight is so much harder because there are a whole bunch of people who like to call themselves South Africans sitting in foreign countries and complaining from a distance about what a terrible country South Africa is and encouraging all the good people left in South Africa to leave as well.
Rolz, you are not a South African, because the South Africa you think of never existed. You dream of the glory days when 10% of the population were guaranteed of the best jobs, whilst 90% of the population had almost no rights. Everything you critisise the current government for, the apartheid government did far worse. The apartheid government didn’t just believe in entitlement, they made it law. And you know what, if you complained about it they would put you in jail (or worse).
Personally I don’t understand how you could possibly feel safe in a country that detains people without trial for 6 years and has no respect for other cultures (and ask yourself whether I am referring to the apartheid government or the American government). And as a little education, I highly recommend you go out of your safe little suburb in America and visit the poor areas, maybe it might open your eyes a little.
14 aneo // May 19, 2008 at 9:48 pm
Rolz:
I lived in the States for two years and chose to return to SA. Yes, I agree that if you’re in the upper middle class bracket in the States it is an easier life than here in SA — for many of the same reasons that life was easy for whites under apartheid.
The poor — almost all black and Hispanic in the cities, and far-flung in the rural areas — are kept away. There are no laws directly stating this should be so in the States, but it evident to anyone who actually looks around them as they walk through the streets of any town or city.
For me, living anywhere comes down to your personal ideas about what society means and even what it means to be human. Yes, SA has a lot of problems, but at least (unlike the States, though Obama is making moves in the right direction) this is part of the national discourse. The SA government has failed to provide many of the basic things people need, for the States is also complicit. But there is a willingness to acknowledge that the government should help and should provide; that individuals should not be blamed for being poor — which is definitely what happens in the States.
I left the States because I could not stand the hypocrisy. I moved back to SA because it is willing to look itself in the eye and admit it still has a long way to go.
You have chosen your own personal and family comfort over everything else. That’s fine. But don’t close your eyes to everything else in a vain attempt to justify your choices.
15 Rolz // May 20, 2008 at 9:36 pm
Sorry Guys, but everything I have read here is just foolish.
Maybe its just that we are at different stages in our evolution…
Firstly, I did return to SA in 2002, after living in the US, I did so because I wanted to be home, and be positive.
Second, I still run a small company in Durban, which employ’s 65% people of colour and my office management are women…
So…. why then am I so foolish that I returned to a place that I have already left once ???
Here is the answer, my wife has almost bee assaulted, the police said they had no cars to respond, but blue security came out thank god and saved the day… I had a gun pointed to my head by a taxi driver, not even 1km from my house. Again, the police were not even slightly interested.. AT ALL…
It seems your arguments are based on an impossible dream, one which I am sorry to say, and I really mean this, will see you in a very dangerous situation one day. I left because I will not live worrying about every sound in my yard at night, or worrying that when my wife does not answer her phone she and my daughter might be being raped and executed…..
I hear what you are saying, and appreciate your point of view…. but how long will it take the Zulu’s to decide to start attacking you like they are with other African cultures, what makes you think you are untouchable, when the Zulus will kill other blacks with their violent, zenophobia… I think guys, this could happen at the drop of a hat, and its not a matter of it, its really just a matter of when !! Remember who is busy bending every law in his path and will be our president soon !!
One a final note, I grew up very poor, we did not starve, so we were not at the bottom of the food chain, but we really had nothing. My mother worked and we just survived. Whoever amongst the whites had the wealth, it most certainly was not me !! And if your wondering, every course and study I ever took, I had to work and pay for myself.
So forgive me for not feeling priveleged, you see I have worked hard my whole life and continue to do so, with no favours because I was white, in fact I started my career as a security guard with a dog, working with many blacks, and paid as one of them.
No my friend, my decisions are not based on politics at all !!! Just calling a spade a spade !
South Africa is on a rapid downhill, which thanks maybe to 2010, will be slowed, but I really know that whe SA blacks are going to turn violent towards the whites, and I dont mean like it is now… I mean like the scenes in Alex at the moment.
Whoever holds the money, even if its just a perception and an incorrect one at that, given all the millions that the blacks and their families in govt are stealing daily…. ,is going to end up slaughtered.
Its happened over and over again in history, I think your naive to think your positive attitude will prevent it from happening in one of the most violent societies on this planet !
16 coro // May 17, 2010 at 6:32 am
I feel so sorry for the people of S.A. Unfortunately it appears that you have fallen for the liberal propaganda. The racist behavior of your government does not exist anywhere else. The power outages do not exist anywhere else. The attacks on farmers do not exist anywhere else. The elimination of any racial makeup in any industry or government does not exist anywhere else. We are not the murder and rape capital of the world. I wish you all luck. Please consider relocating to the United States. We would love to have more of your educated and skilled workers here. US citizens going to SA for the world cup please be careful. SA is not a peaceful, safe and feel good story as described by the foreign press.
17 Spectre // Jul 18, 2010 at 7:49 am
Funny.. I was driving through southwest Houston today and didn’t hear a single gunshot… stores are open, everyone has plenty of food, everyone I deal with is literate, and everything’s working pretty well up here. No one is talking about redistributing our wealth over here, either– and that “gun” angle you mentioned means they won’t try. You sure your information on the sorry state of America is accurate? It doesn’t seem that way on the ground over here…
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