The leaders we deserve

IN a democracy the people get the government they deserve, so goes the cliché credited to the philosopher Joseph de Maistre.


But does this mean the people of the Free State have wrought upon themselves the tribulations that embody their existence under the ruling African National Congress (ANC) party?

Talk about sewage flowing in the streets of Clocolan and Hobhouse.

Talk about the potholes on the Senekal-Marquard road.

Talk about the people of Ladybrand going for weeks without water supplies.

Talk about Eskom threatening to cut off power supplies to Parys, Vredefort, Heilbron, Koppies and Edenville.

How about the people of Viljoenskroon, in this century, squatting on open toilets when nature calls?

And the residents of Leratswana having to live in darkness because they have no electricity supplies?

These are critical issues as South Africa braces for its third municipal elections since local governments were re-organised on a non-racial basis in the wake of the collapse of apartheid rule.

The first municipal polls after the re-organisation were held in 2000.

The ANC has since then won almost all the municipalities in the country.

Little suggests the trend is likely to change come May 18 – never mind the squabbles over candidate selection processes that have rocked the ANC in the Free State.

In Botshabelo this week intra-party skirmishes saw protestors barricading roads with burning tyres and heaps of garbage.

The party’s supporters accuse senior ANC officials in the province of imposing candidates on them.

The ANC’s secretary in the Free State, Sibongile Besani, has put down the intra-party fighting to “misunderstandings” over how the party’s electoral processes worked.

We are a democratic party, he insisted.

Yet ANC candidates, whether popularly elected or imposed, have largely prevailed in local government elections.

The appeal of the ANC as a liberation movement cannot be over-emphasised.

So too can we not belabour the point that the Democratic Alliance remains in the peripheries of power because it is perceived as a white party.

Needless to say, these perceptions will still be crucial when people vote.

This paper is not so much worried about which party will win the forthcoming municipal polls.

It’s about the quality of the candidates, stupid!

Some of the ANC-led municipalities in the Free State, by the party’s own admission, are at the mercy of incompetent councilors and managers.

Greedy officials are lining their pockets through corrupt tender deals.

This is not the leadership that the people of this province deserve.

That’s why we found it critical to remind incumbent councillors and interested candidates of what the citizenry expects from them.

Generally, councils are required to make decisions and set directions for promoting the social, cultural, environmental and economic well-being of their communities.

This, in short, should translate into properly planned residential areas, the building of roads, the provision of water and electricity as well as sanitation facilities.

The challenge is quite enormous but not insurmountable.

We hope the next time our politicians open their mouths they will be talking about how they intend to influence positive change and to, ultimately, make life better and enjoyable for Free Staters.

Evidence on the ground clearly indicates that the current crop of councillors has either failed in this regard or that they had no idea what they were doing for the past five years they have been in office.

It is important that those who seek to be elected as councillors this year understand that they are seeking a very crucial responsibility in our society.

We the people who are led have a big responsibility too.

We have a duty to elect people who understand our problems.

We have a duty to demand proper and timely service delivery.

People need clean water, proper roads, refuse collection, hospitals and schools.

If your councillor has no clue about these basic needs, your choice come May 18 should not be hard.

Free State gets English language newspaper

CHANTELLE BENJAMIN

Published: 2011/03/14 06:39:02 AM

AN ENGLISH language newspaper was launched in the Free State on March 11 2011, and editor Darlington Majonga believes it will go some way to filling the void left by poor coverage of the province in established papers.

Lack of regional coverage by national publications has been one of the criticisms raised by the African National Congress when calling for reform of the media sector. Cost-cutting measures have seen the closure of many provincial offices linked to national newspapers, but Mr Majonga said national newspapers also tended to focus on broader issues and dedicated little space to stories "they deem not to be of national importance".

"This is one of the few provinces that has for a long time been largely uncovered by the media. The publisher, Africa Media Holdings (AMH), felt it was imperative that the province had its own paper.

According to census data, Sotho and Afrikaans predominate as the home languages of 76,3% of the province’s population (Sotho at 64,4% and Afrikaans at 11,9%). SA’s last census took place in 2001. It is generally accepted that many African language speakers choose English over Afrikaans.

Mr Majonga, commenting on the website set up to accompany the newspaper, fstimes.co.za, said: "Everyone in this province is entitled to learn and know what is happening in their villages, communities, towns and districts, as well as beyond its borders."

The broadsheet, the Free State Times, is at present a weekly selling for R5, but Mr Majonga said once the paper was established it would become a daily.

In the meantime, the website will be updated daily . There are also plans to expand the various sections in the paper with the intention of their eventually becoming separate sections.

"It is serious and fun, with analysis, politics, sport and entertainment — everything relevant to our readers," Mr Majonga said.

AMH launched Lesotho newspapers the Lesotho Times and Sunday Express, both of which Mr Majonga edited.

In Lesotho AMH started with a weekly. -- Business Day.