Derrick
ლ(ಠ_ಠ )ლ
- Joined
- Nov 22, 2010
- Messages
- 5,085
- Reaction score
- 5
Our Minister of Public Enterprises, Minister Alec Erwin, put up an impressive show on the BBC News’ notoriously tough HardTalk.
For those of you that don’t know about HardTalk it is a programme that airs interviews which are hard-hitting and known for packing no punches.
Stephen Sackur, HardTalk’s no-nonsense presenter
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/hardtalk/4473211.stm), has been know to tear people apart on air and does very little to soften the blow. The people who go on this show, know that they will be in for a grueling session but with the pummeling comes the recognition that HardTalk get to the heart of the matter.
If you can weather the storm unscathed then your public reputation goes up ten fold.
Erwin did a very good job of answering Sackur’s questions succinctly and presented a very calm and rational face of the South African government. He was quite simply impressive when placed under the fire, even on the difficult topics like crime and its effect on the 2010 World Cup.
His optimism was almost infectious and I started to feel quite positive about national politics and even crime started to look like it was under control.
But then it dawned on me that this is what politicians are supposed to do and there is now no doubt in my mind that Erwin is a particularly skillful politician.
The problem with all his arguments that crime has stabilized and that SA now faces the challenge of bringing it under control is that I just don’t see it.
The number people hit by crime just in my small circle of acquaintances has gone up, the number of reports in the media about crime have gone up, even insurance companies are reporting increased incidences and hence increases in tariffs.
Everything around me concerning crime goes up and whilst it is encouraging to hear that resources to fight this scourge are also increasing, it doesn’t seem to have dented the wave of crime that is hitting citizens.
I am very impressed with Erwin’s performance on HardTalk and his tough stance that we are going to overcome this problem but I’m not convinced by his political mumblings.
It sounds great but are we getting anywhere? The short answer for me currently is no, the criminals are the ones enjoying the fruits of our labour as they travel freely on our streets whilst the tax payers supporting this system hide away behind locked doors.
I’m encouraged by Erwin’s positive aapproach but I’d like to see a more comprehensive plan in place, something that looks as organised as the criminal network in our country. To defeat this highly organised criminal element we need to be just as organised and far smarter than them.
For those of you that don’t know about HardTalk it is a programme that airs interviews which are hard-hitting and known for packing no punches.
Stephen Sackur, HardTalk’s no-nonsense presenter
(http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/hardtalk/4473211.stm), has been know to tear people apart on air and does very little to soften the blow. The people who go on this show, know that they will be in for a grueling session but with the pummeling comes the recognition that HardTalk get to the heart of the matter.
If you can weather the storm unscathed then your public reputation goes up ten fold.
Erwin did a very good job of answering Sackur’s questions succinctly and presented a very calm and rational face of the South African government. He was quite simply impressive when placed under the fire, even on the difficult topics like crime and its effect on the 2010 World Cup.
His optimism was almost infectious and I started to feel quite positive about national politics and even crime started to look like it was under control.
But then it dawned on me that this is what politicians are supposed to do and there is now no doubt in my mind that Erwin is a particularly skillful politician.
The problem with all his arguments that crime has stabilized and that SA now faces the challenge of bringing it under control is that I just don’t see it.
The number people hit by crime just in my small circle of acquaintances has gone up, the number of reports in the media about crime have gone up, even insurance companies are reporting increased incidences and hence increases in tariffs.
Everything around me concerning crime goes up and whilst it is encouraging to hear that resources to fight this scourge are also increasing, it doesn’t seem to have dented the wave of crime that is hitting citizens.
I am very impressed with Erwin’s performance on HardTalk and his tough stance that we are going to overcome this problem but I’m not convinced by his political mumblings.
It sounds great but are we getting anywhere? The short answer for me currently is no, the criminals are the ones enjoying the fruits of our labour as they travel freely on our streets whilst the tax payers supporting this system hide away behind locked doors.
I’m encouraged by Erwin’s positive aapproach but I’d like to see a more comprehensive plan in place, something that looks as organised as the criminal network in our country. To defeat this highly organised criminal element we need to be just as organised and far smarter than them.