I have taken somewhat disengaged view towards politics lately, but the events of last month really changed a lot in South African politics and the minds of the people. The thing is that for the first time in very long time, you simply can’t be disengaged anymore…
This became most apparent to me when I was visiting local tavern, instead of the usual loud beating noises coming from the stereo. The radio was playing one of the many heated debates in parliament, instead of the usual rowdiness there was an acute attentiveness from everyone, with the occasional sneer remark.
Everywhere I walked it seemed like that everyone was listening to the jostle in parliament and it was playing on every loud speaker imaginable. The next day I could also not escape the throng of public uproar or jubilation of the parliament’s squabbles. The whole gravity of the event was hit home when my uncle, a man that is the most apolitical man I know, remarked, firstly before any greetings, what a clown Malema was.
I am sure most of you are aware of most of the happenings in parliament lately, but I would like to maybe highlight one or two things for you which I found of paramount importance. Firstly, SONA saw the EFF suffer its first significant political squabble, though it was decisively dealt with (it is ironic that similar violence was later used on Malema and his cohorts in parliament mere hours later) and the Bikoist klipgooier’s revolt seems to have failed.
Secondly, the jamming of the cellphone signals, not very bright idea by the ANC and I am sure liberal commentators will be foaming at their mouths for years to come over the breach of number of rights. This was probably the biggest and most unneeded blunder for the ANC. Thirdly, it seems like the only way to get something significant into the ANC’s collective consciousness is to beat it in.
Fourthly, the marriage between two natural ideological enemies, EFF and the DA, to counter the stronger opposition of ANC might probably be the future crux of South African politics. The survival of this Alliance is both the best hope for democracy and probably the greatest threat to it as well. Morally, even the DA seems to be compromised to bow to popular pressure and seems to even disregard etiquette by insulting the President. The Liberal DA of Tony Leon is dead.
In the end the most significant thing I can take out of this whole fray is that Julius Sello Malema, praise him as a saint or hate him as a sinner, has given this nation’s people a political consciousness.