Jordan must have the courage to explain himself

It is difficult to look the other way and pretend that nothing has happened. The cloud hanging over ANC veteran and respected leader Pallo Jordan will not dissipate unless he does something about it.

It is over a week since the Sunday Times revealed that the academic qualifications to which he has for so long laid claim do not exist. We fervently hope that an explanation will be provided.

Speculation as to how Jordan will respond to the exposé has dominated public discourse for the past week and now more questions are being asked as a result of his silence.

It is deeply concerning that Jordan has elected to keep quiet about such a matter, which so undermines his credibility.

It is important that we get an answer from him as we try to build a nation based on integrity.

What we demand of our leaders and the entire nation should not just be empty slogans. They, and we, must be seen to be practising what we preach.

As Jordan ponders whether to come out, the longer he keeps quiet, the more questions perplexed South Africans ask about his integrity.

Though some of us question the motive for the outing of Jordan's lack of qualifications, we should remember the position and the status we have conferred o n him over the years.

No one doubts his liberation credentials, or his vast knowledge of our history and understanding of our present predicaments. It is, however, disconcerting that he allowed the nation to call him "doctor" when he knew he was not entitled to that honorific.

The debacle should not be allowed to degenerate into a racial inferno, given our country's history. Whether black, white or in between, the truth is what matters.

We hope that sooner rather than later Jordan will take the nation into his confidence and tell us about his academic qualifications.

What some of our leaders in government and business fail to comprehend is the power of an apology.

To apologise does not diminish one's standing, it proves that you are human.

Jordan's intellectual depths run deep. It will be a pity if he withdraws from the national discourse.