Last chance?

IT’S GOING to be an eventful year as the ANC tries to do what so many of its staunchest, oldest and most loyal supporters believe it always does: “self-correct”. It won’t be easy. There is so much that the ANC has done wrong, it will be difficult to extricate itself from the hole it has dug for itself. But extricate itself it must if it is to avoid its worst nightmare – losing power.

It wasn’t all that long ago that President Jacob Zuma predicted that the ANC would rule South Africa “until Jesus comes”.

But now, as the ANC lurches from crisis to crisis due to the machinations of Zuma himself, this prediction may have to be reworded. Or, alternatively, Jesus may have to come sooner than was predicted.

Or course, the chances of the ANC continuimg to govern will depend to a large extent on who takes over from Zuma as head of the ANC later this year.

The race has started, the halos have been dusted off, promises are rolling off tongues – and they will get more outrageous all the time as the countdown continues and desperation sets in.

South Africa is a country in a crisis. Our unemployment numbers run into millions. Our youth can’t find jobs. Crime is out of hand. Corruption is insidious. Our housing shortage runs into millions.

None of these problems will be resolved with a magic wand. It is going to be a slow process. Our call, therefore, to those who believe they are in the running to head the ANC – and from there, South Africa – is: please do not over-promise. Go back to the drawing board and start devising policies that will start a process of rebuilding.

On behalf of the voters who have voted for the ANC in the past and who are wondering whether the party deserves another chance, we would like to ask a simple question of all the candidates: How would you use yet another chance to grow and develop our beloved country?