What can be done to improve SA?

Country in distressed state

WHAT went wrong?

What happened to South Africa, once known as a promising land?

What have we done wrong that has led our beloved country to be in such a state?

Is it too late to show disapproval of all the mistakes?

Do we have all the necessary resources to bring about change?

Let’s go back to what was promised to us by the government of the day.

Remember, we were promised free education?

Remember we were promised free houses?

Remember we were promised access to state institutions?

What has led to the decline of all of these?

As South Africans, did we expect too much from the government, to the point where we depend/ depended solely on the government?

I would like to think that it would have been very much easier if the government had provided us with much-needed skills to develop our country.

We don’t need external labourers to get things done.

What about those who went to school and got their qualification?

Don’t they have enough skills to produce or provide services expected by the government and the private sector?

Did we focus too much on political power, rather than focusing more on socio-economic policies?

We do have policies in South Africa, but the problem is with implementation.

There have been a number of policies introduced since the dawn of democracy, but none of them lasted long, even the RDP.

Let’s think about what could have happened if the vast majority of policies had been implemented and monitored in ensuring the delivery of essential services.

I feel like sometimes there’s more we could do as the nation.

Yes, I do agree with the fact that the country needs external donors, but sometimes the very same donors tend to exploit us.

Even today we are caught in situations created by us.

When I say “us”, I refer to the public and the private sector.

People are losing jobs left, right and centre, but little is done about that.

When will the government realise that things are getting out of control?

We could blame the leadership, we could blame the stance the government took, we could blame socio-economic policies. But we need solutions. It also saddens me to see some of the situations our people live under.

Yet, there are people who get paid to deliver services to these people.

Is it that difficult for the government to employ skilled people for these relevant positions? Our people (South Africans) suffered enough pain during the apartheid era.

Why should they continue living like outsiders?

What happened to people’s consciences?

Every day in South Africa, there’s a new crisis arising.

Why? Our people don’t (get) enough attention from our leaders.

The other thing we should revisit is how public officials are appointed.

The younger generation of South Africa is being sidelined.

It is so worrying to see people of my age looking for jobs, but given internships while proper jobs are given to those who don’t deserve them – on merit.

What’s the point of going to school, if our qualifications mean nothing? What society are we building if relevant professionals are not being acknowledged?

If I am qualified for whatever position, why is it necessary for me to be a member of a certain political party?

We ask the current leadership to redress all the injustices.

Political infighting won’t take us anywhere, instead it will break whatever unity that is left.

We have to be united in achieving a common goal.

Together we can build a better South Africa!

Zamuxolo Nduna, BA honours student in political science, NMMU