EDITORIAL | What has become of South African society — reflect on the 30 years

Silly season is upon South Africa and political parties are going out of their way to woo voters ahead of the May 29 general elections. 

This year's elections take place at a time when South Africa celebrates 30 years of democracy. Three decades is no joke. Government, the ruling party and the electorate have to reflect on the promise, the journey and the experience. 

So pivotal the moment, South Africa has seen old ANC leaders who have not campaigned in previous elections coming out to ask for yet another five years in government. 

Former presidents Thabo Mbeki and Kgalema Motlanthe and former Gauteng premier Tokyo Sexwale were on the streets of the townships telling people that they acknowledge the mistakes of the ANC, but it remains the only vehicle by which this country can be taken forward. 

President Cyril Ramaphosa himself has been detailing stats on housing, electricity, roads, access to education, all that has been achieved under the ANC government. 

On the other side, opposition parties have been lashing at the ruling party for its failures such as load-shedding and high unemployment. It has been busy and sometimes a little messy. 

But very little has been said about the kind of society that South Africa was in 1994 and the one that is today. 

Yes, it is good to know what has been delivered by government over time and that is what people pay taxes for. But the other issue that no-one is talking about is the kind of society that South Africa has become.

We have become an uncaring society, ruthless, obsessed with acquisition of wealth at whatever expense and ensuring that everyone sees that we are better than them. As the country continued to advance in its democracy, it simply got derailed on the values of ubuntu, which made it great.

On Friday night, Ditebogo Junior Phalane, a five-year-old boy from Soshanguve, was shot dead in a suspected hijacking. Ditebogo’s picture was on social media with his beautiful smile, with everyone asking how do you shoot a child this innocent? 

This was the same week in which basic education minister Angie Motshekga visited a school in Ivory Park, where it is suspected that four pupils committed suicide, leaving their families with so many questions. 

In February, a 13-year-old boy arrived at the Primrose Primary school in Ekurhuleni armed with his father’s gun. When he was called to the principal’s office, the boy opened fire on him. After shooting the principal, Noko Selepe, the boy waited to see if he was still alive before walking away. Selepe pretended to be dead and that saved his life. 

These three incidents should raise questions about the kind of society that South Africa has become. The behaviour of the youth leaves everyone baffled, and the violence with which crime is committed cannot be compared to any place in the world. 

There is so much that has gone right in a free South Africa, but boy oh boy, we have become a different people. 

We have become an uncaring society, ruthless, obsessed with acquisition of wealth at whatever expense and ensuring that everyone sees that we are better than them. As the country continued to advance in its democracy, it simply got derailed from the values of ubuntu, which made it great. 

The whole point of having a democratic government was not just about houses, roads and access to education, it was about building a certain type of society in which everyone would be free and enjoy that freedom without any fear. 

But that is not the case. South Africa is less caring than it was before. The values that compelled people to lay down their lives have been place aside and it is now about gain, gain and more gain. 

As a nation reflecting on a journey of freedom, the question remains, what kind of society has South Africa become?

Let us hear from the politicians what is it they will do to try to steer South Africa into a different trajectory when it comes to societal values. 

In African culture, what distinguishes human beings from animals is the care for another’s pain. When someone violates another human being in some extreme way, that is described as “ubulwane”, loosely translated as being inhumane. 

Is there anything among the many manifestos that have been launched over the past months that says something about the creation of a society that cares? Let South Africans reflect on this aspect of the 30 years of democracy and decide if the country is headed in the right direction. The front pages of newspapers simply suggest the opposite. 

An extract from the preamble of our constitution must remind everyone of the society that was envisaged by the founding fathers of our democracy. 

It simply states: “We therefore, through our freely elected representatives, adopt this Constitution as the supreme law of the Republic so as to heal the divisions of the past and establish a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights; Lay the foundations for a democratic and open society in which government is based on the will of the people and every citizen is equally protected by law; Improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person ...” 

South Africa is far from being the society expressed above.