THOUGHT LEADERSHIP - The African Mirror

Jul

14

2021

South African policies go some way to tackling poverty and inequality. But more is needed

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SOUTH Africa is one of the most unequal societies in the world. More than 50% of the population live in poverty. Despite notable gains in poverty reduction post-apartheid, poverty levels have remained consistently highest among women, black South Africans, people with disabilities, and those living in rural areas. SOPHIE PLAGERSON, Senior research fellow at the Centre for Social Development in Africa, University of Johannesburg The government has committed itself to addressing poverty, inequality and social exclusion – understood as a disadvantage by gender, race, disability or place. The mandate is laid out in the constitution and in the government’s National…

Jul

13

2021

By The African Mirror

This is not who we are as a people

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

CYRIL RAMAPHOSA OVER the past few days and nights, there have been acts of public violence of a kind rarely seen in the history of our democracy. Property has been vandalised and destroyed. Shops have been looted. Law-abiding citizens have been threatened and intimidated. Workers are scared that they may not be able to return to work. People have died. At this hour, there are several families in our country that are in mourning. I speak of the families of Nkosikhona Chiza, Ndumiso Shezi, Khaya Mkhize, Zethembe Ndwandwe, Lindani Bhengu and Lindokuhle Gumede in Gauteng. I speak of the families…

Apr

10

2021

By The African Mirror

Frelimo gambled everything on gas – and lost

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

JOSEPH HANLON THE leadership of Mozambique’s ruling party, Frelimo, was dazzled by gas. The discovery of the second-largest gas reserve in Africa in 2010 led the political and business elite to believe Mozambique would be like Abu Dhabi, Qatar or Kuwait. Gas would make them fabulously wealthy and the riches would trickle down to ordinary people. Poverty and inequality were increasing, but there was no reason to spend money on rural development because the gas bonanza would end poverty. Of course, the elites could take their share early, such as with the $2 billion secret debt in 2012. The gas windfall…

Apr

09

2021

By The African Mirror

A woman ahead of her time: The Lesseyton moment

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ZUBEIDA JAFFER CHARLOTTE Mannya Maxeke took the unusual step in 1902 to insist on the participation of women in church and political meetings. She had graduated with a BSc Degree in 1901 becoming the first indigenous South African women to achieve this. When she returned home from Ohio in the USA, she found herself stuck at the Cape as the country was plunged in white-on-white violence that became referred to as the Anglo-Boer War. Her plan was to travel to Ramakgopa Village to join her father and start implementing her dream of educating the local people. Nearly eight years had…

Jul

10

2021

By The African Mirror

As South Sudan turns 10, questions over the role of the church emerge amid anti-clerical violence

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ON July 9, 2021, South Sudan will celebrate its 10th anniversary of independence – but it does so amid concern over violence in the young nation. CHRISTOPHER TOUNSEL, Assistant Professor of History and African Studies, Penn State Recent attacks on two Catholic priests have also put a focus on the role of the church in South Sudan. The country’s freedom was achieved after two lengthy civil wars against its now northern neighbour, Sudan, in which religious identity played a key role. During the second of these wars, from 1983 to 2005, the Sudanese government attempted to fashion the country as…

Apr

08

2021

By The African Mirror

‘Rwanda’s story serves as an uplifting symbol of renewal, even beyond our borders’

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

PAUL KAGAME THIS may be the 27th time we have marked commemoration, but the occasion is never ordinary. There are always reminders of what is at stake. New mass graves are regularly discovered. Many perpetrators still roam free. But we cannot allow the weight of our history to crush us. This is also the second Kwibuka during the Covid-19 pandemic. The physical distance only adds to the emotional burden on survivors, whose quiet strength has nourished our nation’s revival. We thank you and we honour the sacrifices you have made for the sake of a better future for us all.…

Jul

09

2021

By The African Mirror

Jacob Zuma: when did erstwhile South African revolutionary lose his way?

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

IT'S the small crimes that bring you down. Al Capone went merrily on his murdering way until the FBI nailed him for tax evasion. Richard Nixon seemed immune to the consequences of lying about Vietnam, Cambodia and Chile but his lies over the silly crime of burgling the Democratic Party’s headquarters did for him. GAVIN EVANS, Lecturer, Culture and Media department, Birkbeck, University of London So it is with Jacob Zuma South Africa’s former president. He faced multiple charges of corruption, but, so far, has avoided his day in court. He was tried for rape and acquitted. As president he…

Jul

08

2021

By The African Mirror

Gabriel Hertis: The sun has set on an amazing life

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

ABDUL-KARIM G ELGONI THE African Diaspora Forum (ADF) lost one of its hard-working leaders, Gabriel Hertis, a staunch activist for the rights of migrants, refugees and asylum seekers in South Africa. Gabriel Hertis Gabriel, as we used to call him, succumbed to a short illness on Friday, July 2. His untimely death robbed our community of one of its pillars, whose leadership and dedication to working with and for migrants was the driving force behind the ADF. During his time with the organization, Gabriel worked with the founding leaders of the ADF in building a strong organization that has become…

Jul

08

2021

By The African Mirror

Farewell my mentor and brother, Khehla “Bra K” Mthembu

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

MPHO MOERANE TODAY I woke up to the sad news of the passing on of my mentor and brother, Bra Khehla Mthembu. Bra K was one of the most hardworking individuals I have ever met. An inspirational father figure to many in the political and business circles. A consummate professional, unifier, and shrewd perfectionist. At the time of his passing, Bra K was a Board Member at City Power, an electricity utility within the City of Johannesburg, which falls under my department, Environment and Infrastructure Services Department (EISD). Bra K dedicated his entire life to promoting black leadership excellence, supporting…

Jul

06

2021

By The African Mirror

Jacob Zuma isn’t a man with a cause. Just a wily politician trying to evade the law

THOUGHT LEADERSHIP

SOUTH Africa’s Constitutional Court ruling to imprison the country’s former president, Jacob Zuma, was unprecedented. But it wasn’t unexpected. The author of the majority judgment, Justice Sisi Khampepe, captured the inevitability of the outcome somewhere in the middle the ruling, when she noted: For I am not in the habit of playing my cards close to my chest, let me, at this earliest opportunity, state that Mr Zuma has earned himself a punitive sanction of direct and unsuspended sentence. Nor was Zuma’s wrongful behaviour guided by any thought-out, long term strategy. It began as an instinctive reaction to evade accountability…