THE ROT HAS LEFT THE COUNTRY VULNERABLE AND ON POLITICAL LIFE SUPPORT

THE Stuttafords empire is crumbling, General Motors is leaving our shores, and Gwede Mantashe will no longer be ANC secretary-general from the end of this year.

Under these circumstances, the ruling party looks set for a humiliation at the polls in 2019, and the country will then be in uncharted waters.

The possibility of a civil war will become a grim reality. We are in turmoil politically, economically, financially and socially. We are on political life support and have only two years to sort out our immense problems.

Failure to deliver will surely result in absolute chaos. The task of society must be to eradicate corruption at every level.

Whether one accepts the fact or not that politicians and senior civil servants are responsible for the corruption or for the downfall of prosperity in our country, the evidence is there for posterity to judge. Corruption knows no political party boundaries. You see it in every sphere of our society.

Fervent adherence to unbridled greed by the political leadership has created graft in all levels of society. This has enabled graft to germinate, fester and proliferate.

History attests that pervasive corrup- tion is oppressive of the masses and, if left unchecked, will lead to anarchy.

As long as there is pervasive corruption, millions of South Africans will be condemned to agonising poverty and as long as the masses continue to suffer, our democracy will remain fragile.

There are subterranean political tensions in South Africa today partly as a result of ravaging corruption. We need selfless competent leaders to eradicate corruption.

Hopefully, the next government will carry out its mandate to create a better South Africa.

Farouk Araie