The disappearance of the money allocated to turning Winnie Madikizela-Mandela's former house of banishment in Brandfort into a national heritage site is painful. It is now 11 years since a budget was approved by the Free State government. The money is gone.
Lots of excuses were made by government officials, from the former premier of the Free State to heads of department and senior management. This is a shame, South Africa.
If such pain is inflicted on the memory of our struggle stalwart and mother of the nation, what about ordinary folks?
We must lose sleep over this matter and correct the wrong that was committed.
But why have we found ourselves in this situation? We seem to have lost consciousness in various sectors of our society.
The government has monitoring mechanisms for special projects like this one, but everyone turned a blind eye for 11 years and did nothing. Possibly there were fights over the budget and strategies developed on how to conceal this shame.
This is no surprise.
The Life Esidimeni commission of inquiry is the most recent illustration of the lack of empathy of politicians and public servants. Our most vulnerable citizens perished because of the selfish attitude of our officials and politicians.The fights we have witnessed - at Eskom, in the Independent Police Investigative Directorate, the police, the Passenger Rail Agency of South Africa and at SAA - tell a tragic tale about our country.
The fact that some of our municipalities have been made dysfunctional is further proof that we are in trouble. We must get rid of greedy, corrupt politicians and public servants. These acts stifle our development and negate the liberation struggle of our people.
Members of the public also play an active part in the lack of moral compass in the management of our public affairs.
Why did the people of Brandfort leave the house of Mama Winnie to decay before their eyes? Was there not even one person who knew about the project and could have blown the whistle? Was there not a community activist or businessman or -woman from Brandfort who cared enough to raise the issue of the house?
This is no surprise, either.
Our people have abandoned the spirit of the 1980s activism that Mama Winnie championed and led during the most difficult time in our country's history.
We do not love ourselves any more. We are people who despise one another.Road rage and lack of patience are cases in point. The killing and abuse of women and children still dominate our news headlines.
We noted with horror the gruesome murder of our fellow citizens in Emalahleni, where albino children were abducted and murdered for ritual purposes.
We learnt with shock about a woman train driver who was attacked by Mamelodi thugs.
We still witness damage to public property in the name of service delivery. The new Prasa trains, which are public property and world class, were not spared: they were damaged as well.
The Brandfort shame is a betrayal of our Freedom Charter and our people who paid the highest price in the fight for freedom.
It is an ugly spitting on the graves of Solomon Mahlangu, Chris Hani, Nelson Mandela, Barney Molokoane, Ruth First, Joe Slovo, Moses Kotane, Steve Biko and many other liberation fighters.
We cannot let such things happen any more. If we do, one day we will wake up and there will be no country. We will have been sold to the highest bidder. We will not be able to deliver even the most basic services in our communities.
This is already happening in some municipalities, where cries and complaints about unfixed potholes and electricity and water cut-offs have become the order of the day.
Let us stand up, just like our mother of the nation, and stop the rot of corruption so that it does not become the permanent paradox of our lifetime.
Dibakwane is the founder of the Impumelelo Educational Trust...