Moral leaders for moral citizens
“An unethical virus has taken root in our society and is spreading through it”
Very clear messages about the desperate need for ethics and morals at all levels of society, from family to business and government, emerged at the Unisa- Mail & Guardian Critical Thinking Forum on ethical leadership, held at Unisa’s ZK Matthews Great Hall in Pretoria on June 29.
The event hosted leaders from the business and ecclesiastical communities, parastatals and labour and student formations.
Opening the panel discussion, Unisa’s principal and vice-chancellor Professor Mandla Makhanya stressed the need for enlightened thinking.
“The Education White Paper 3 (1997) asserts that critical thinking is demonstrated in forward thinking reflection, as well as the evaluation, analysis and renewal of current knowledge and the production of new knowledge, in an environment of tolerance and for the public good,” said Makhanya.
“This responsibility is extended to students, who must, according to a 1998 Unesco report, be able to speak out on ethical, cultural and social problems completely independently and in full awareness of their responsibilities, exercising the kind of intellectual authority that society needs to help it to reflect, understand and account. They must also play a role in helping to identify and address issues that affect the wellbeing of communities, nations and global society.”
Critical citizenry
Makhanya highlighted that the intellectual community is similarly tasked to “promote the spirit of tolerance towards different views and positions and enhance democratic debate and discussion” — a comment extracted from the Kampala Declaration of 1990.
“The call from the national and global agendas is clear. We are all exhorted to be active members of a critical citizenry. While this is not new for the higher education sector, we don’t seem to be doing so well. As far back as 1997, South Africa’s department of education asserted that higher education has an unmatched obligation, which has not been adequately fulfilled, to help lay the foundations of a critical civil society, with a culture of public debate and tolerance that accommodates differences and competing interests.
“It has much more to do, both within its own institutions and in its influence on the broader community, to strengthen the democratic ethos, the sense of common citizenship and commitment to a common good.”
Makhanya stressed the need to contribute to thought leadership and critical dialogue through critical thinking forums designed to promote discussion on matters central to the national discourse.
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