Stop breeding defiance

IAFTER THOUGHTS GUESTWRITER

T’S all well and good that the compensation-seeking residents of Malindza, who had camped outside Sokhamlilo Building in the capital city, are back home and happy, but the damage that has been caused leading to the payment has created cracks in several structures of our society, that no amount of compensation could ever repair.

All they wanted and deserved was compensation for their cracked houses, which were affected during the construction of the King Mswati III International Airport, but it has taken almost a decade and numerous nights of protests, plus Parliament debates and a lawyer’s intervention to receive a pay-out.

Juxtapose this with effortless compensations elsewhere, the most recent being that of the Lobamba Lomdzala Member of the Parliament (MP) Marwick Khumalo’s family being moved from Manzana. Their new houses were built without a fuss. So were the families making way for the expansion of Lozitha Royal Residence.

So how do we then begin to find fault in the act of the residents who see their case as less important, if not because they are probably regarded as lesser citizens? How do we expect our loyal citizens in communities to perceive this selective treatment? This is not the face we wish to see when it comes to development in this country and the public deserves some plausible answers for the Malindza compensation fiasco.

THE Thabo Bester story reminded me so much of a similar incident that happened in Eswatini, where a number of young women came out and made claims about a photographer who would lure them with a free photo-shoot and later rape them. Bester, who is also known as the ‘Facebook rapist’, lured women, especially aspiring models and raped them using different aliases on Facebook. He raped and killed one woman in Cape Town, at a hotel, who had become his lover. He was arrested and convicted of all these crimes, and then later with his girlfriend Nandipha Magudumana, they orchestrated his prison escape. That is the long and short of it.

The reason these two stories sound so similar to me is that they both used social media to lure these girls, while the one in Eswatini was friends to some of his victims. Both cases should have ended in an almost similar conviction if the Eswatini one was ever taken seriously by the

It has set a bad precedent, instigated open defiance of authority and painted a very negative picture of government’s attitude towards its people nationally and across the globe, not to mention the seed that has been planted in the minds of the children of these residents, who now see such protests as a means to an end, particularly because this is not the first time the residents have had to embark on this act.

We do recall they engaged in a similar campout before the first instalment was paid a few years ago. They spent nights outside the gates of the quarry mine operated by Inyatsi Construction after being told that it was operated by the company that was supposed to compensate them.

Adopted

According to a consultancy report, which was tabled and adopted in Parliament in 2021, Inyatsi Construction was supposed to compensate the affected families with E46 million for the houses that developed cracks due to the quarry blasting works performed by the construction company. This matter compelled them to hire a lawyer.

Now we are told that the money is to be paid out by government, or should we say the taxpayer. The Minister of Economic Planning and Development, Dr Tambo Gina, owes the public an explanation for this unacceptable episode. It has not only embarrassed government, but the Malindza chief, who represents His Majesty the King, as an overseer of the community. An order by Malindza Chief Ndlondlo Tsabedze, conveyed by Indvuna Sipho Dlamini, calling the residents back home to have the matter settled at the community level was openly defied. This has enormous ramifications for the residents.

The political structure in the areas has also been stripped of its influence and, worst of all, its trust. Dvokodvweni MP Mduduzi Magagula’s attempts to have the residents return home were also rejected. This despite assurances from the MP that the E25

authorities in the first place. I look at the Bester story and realise how far behind we are as a country in protecting women, when someone whose story was out there that he raped multiple women was not even brought in for questioning, let alone arrested. If anything, turning a blind eye on this story a few years ago made it okay for men to use women in such a manner.

However, I feel like what we can applaud and acknowledge is the role of social media in both stories. It was social media that brought awareness and possibly prevented many more ladies from falling victims.

Visibility

Social media can be capable of advancing any movement by bringing greater visibility to women’s rights issues, gender-based violence, ill-practice while facilitating effective communication, aiding people in organising, educating people on women’s issues and current events, and inspiring people to become activists in the fight for greater equality. Yet social media can also potentially be detrimental to women’s mental health through online harassment and disinformation, triggering those who’ve fallen victims to rape and domestic violence.

On social media there is promotion of constant self-comparisons and body image issues driven by societal beauty standards, and weakened critical thinking.

But how do we avoid such? There is no way to avoid social media because so much good comes out of it, but how do we ensure that we capitalise on the good? Many of us are unaware of the million set aside for the compensation of the residents had been paid and that the delays were caused by processes in the government system.

Magagula, who doubles as the Chairperson of the Portfolio Committee of the Ministry of Economic Planning and Development, lamented the lack of confidence in him and government when the residents refused to leave on his word.

The critics of the Tinkhundla System were only too happy to grab the opportunity to show affection and support towards the residents and we should not be surprised when these critics start gloating that it was their influence that caused government to act.

A little solace for government is that the residents have not joined forces with the progressive movement or radical elements. Despite the hardships, they were still grateful for the processing of the payments.

However, in expressing this appreciation, one of the residents listed the elements that worked in their favour. Gcwetha Magagula said their intentions were purely about demanding compensation for the damaged houses. He applauded his fellow community members for their unity, appreciated members of the public for supplying them with food and blankets and commended the media for informing the world about their plight.

These factors, he believes, are what helped them get the attention they deserved. Who is to say uMthombeni, his children, or his fellow compatriots, have not found a permanent strategy to get attention for other issues affecting their lives?

Creating discontent is not the consequence of development we want for this country, especially with so many more projects on the horizon. As a country, we already face a monumental task in closing the inequality gap, which is allegedly among the top 10 in the world. To be successful in this regard, we must first treat all citizens fairly and with the utmost respect, because respect and trust are earned.

digital bread crumbs that we leave behind with every social media post, and how easy it is for a person with malicious intent to do harm. Do you notice how you can search for, say a hotel, and then later get ads targeted to you from websites you hadn’t even visited? Every time you enter something into the search box, some similar adverts will pop up and show you different options of what you were searching for.

That is how social media perverts target their prey. Everything you post on social media, every photo, every post, every ‘reaction’, they will use this information to target you and before we know it, you will be making it to the list of victims targeted by the ‘Facebook rapist’.

Another thing I have noticed, and can actually be verified, is that applications (what you call Apps) are not standalone or self-contained. You know the pop-up messages that come up when you install an app to ‘give this app access to your contacts’ and you click ‘yes’, or ‘give this app access to other apps’ and you click ‘yes’ again? Social media predators can gain access to you via your friends’ list and people you may know. I do not know how many times I’ve received messages, reactions and comments from people who aren’t even my friends on Facebook, and they seem to suspiciously know more than a person who isn’t a contact is supposed to know. I always block them as soon as they show themselves because those are exactly the people you would not want to interact with. The ones you don’t know, but they seem to know you. Those are the predators like Thabo Bester; block them!