Siphox.
There was a time when I was very grateful to the ANC, for following a vision for a harmonious South Africa, for not taking reprisals out on whites, for accomplishing a peaceful transition to democracy, and for creating a country that was working. I was quite happy to say openly that I thought the ANC was doing a good job. This was during Mbeki's first term of office.
My perceptions have changed greatly, not in small part due to Mbeki.
I found Mbeki to be a very weak man. Not only was he highly insecure which made him defensive. This was manifest by the typical attitude of whenever attacked on any issue, responding by playing the race card, rather than look at whether the criticism was valid. This has been debated many times over - AIDS, Telecoms, Zimbabwe etc...
Under Mbeki's lack of leadership, it also became apparent that the ANC lost its moral compass. The division between business and the ANC became very blurred, with many politicians using their political influence to gain prestigious positions on the boards of top companies, with little regard for the fact that they were business and financially illiterate. In short, what happened was a scramble for riches under the guise of BEE occurred.
Mbeki also did his level best to remove anyone who posed a threat to his leadership (here, think Sexwale, Ramaphosa etc...) so any potentially good leadership was outed, and we were left with the likes of Tshabalala-Msimang, Mfeketo, Matseppi-Casaburri, Erwin, Nqakula. These people were yes-men. People who didn't criticise Mbeki and were rewarded for loyalty, not performance.
Lastly, Mbeki created the void for Jacob Zuma - a popularist, who is a complete political chameleon. Given Zuma's speeches so far, he has pandered to every group he has spoken to, often making contradictory statements. Such a man, cannot in my opinion be trusted.
Look closely at the ANC, and you will not see the same organisation which consisted of people like Biko, Mandela and Thambo. It is a different organisation with a different agenda, and therefore shouldn't command loyalty for its struggle against apartheid.
For these reasons I cannot vote for the ANC.
I hold my point about your selective responses. You have chosen not to respond to many valid points raised by me, and as such, I cannot find much to recommend your viewpoint.
I would however, recommend that you think long and hard about whether you want to be in a country ruled by a person who has not revealed his agenda, and who considers himself important enough to drive in police motorcades at 160km/h bullying any other drivers on the road.
These are some of the hallmarks of a dictator in the making.
Sign up with Google
