What SA needs now is a higher calling we can identify with

EVERYWHERE one looks, South Africa seems to be tearing itself apart, be it the national destruction force unleashed by our president, the labour and civil unrest that have become a daily occurrence, the lawlessness on the roads, or — as we discovered this week — even our natural hair, which has been thrown into the stew of passionate conflicts.

The anarchy that is loosed upon the country, to borrow from a famous poet, far outweighs the full-blown rebellion of the ’80s. Then the government was at odds with its people. Calling the current lot a government is ascribing to them attributes they neither possess nor deserve.

It’s become a snake pit. The fight for state resources is as flagrant as it is shameless. The looting becomes more frenzied and desperate as the deadline approaches. So much to loot, so little time.

That the country has become rudderless is nothing new. It’s been the defining feature of Jacob Zuma’s presidency. He’s now leading a fierce rebellion against the people. And he’s in the stronger position because he’s sitting atop the totem pole with all levers of power at his command.

Because the president has shirked his responsibilities, minor divisions and differences in society have become magnified. No one respected is left to call for cooler heads.

Questions abound. If the president cannot be the symbol of national unity, who then is to hold society together or prevent it from fraying? What is the mission of this society? If we have to keep our eyes on the prize, what is the prize? But, even more fundamentally, what does it mean to be a South African? What makes us so? Is it because we occupy the same piece of land, or do we have innate qualities or characteristics that connect us to one another in fellowship as South African citizens?

These are difficult questions with few ready answers. But it’s in keeping at it that we’ll eventually get closer to understanding not only where we are, but the kind of society we seek. The problem right now is that nobody seems to be wrestling with such issues. “If you don’t know where you are going,” said the Cheshire Cat, “any road can take you there.”

South Africa as currently constituted is a fairly young country. Previously it was not only defined by divisions and discrimination, but for decades the very notion of who was a South African was a contested one. The victors had not only captured the spoils, they had also sought to strip the vanquished of their identities. That was the crux of the struggle against apartheid.

After the 1994 settlement we all congratulated ourselves on a job well done, then pretty much continued on our separate ways as before.

Although the country has been governed by the same party for the past 22 years, each change in its leadership has often felt like a new party coming to power, with a change in tone and emphasis as far as policy was concerned.

Nelson Mandela’s policy of reconciliation was probably more pronounced because it came immediately after the divisions wrought by apartheid. Whereas apartheid divided the country, he sought to unite it. Thabo Mbeki’s starting point was that the country was divided between black people, who were poor, and white people, who were generally well-to-do. Thus race was front and centre in everything he did.

Apart from his penchant to enrich himself and his inner circle, it’s difficult to know what Zuma stands for, or what his thinking is on the great issues that confront the country. He’s suitably vacant. Rampant corruption, not ideas, will be his enduring legacy.

Given the divisions that have scarred our society for decades, it is surprising that very little effort is being made to ameliorate them. Instead, these divisions have been allowed to fester and poison the well. The vitriol that now passes for public discourse is a function of such neglect.

Even an achievement such as the increase of the black middle class can also be seen in negative terms. It’s blurred the colour divide all right, but the gap between rich and poor has widened.

What we seem to have in spades is suspicion. Wrong motives are easily ascribed to words and actions. People who hold contrary views are seen as enemies who are a threat to one’s interests, even to one’s very existence. The public discourse has become toxic.

We need to define patriotism not as love of country, but as love of “my people”. A country without people is nothing but a patch of barren land.

But then who are “my people”? You should be your brother’s keeper.

What South Africa needs is a unifying ideology, a higher calling with which people of all hues and stations can not only identify, but to which they can aspire with equal vigour and affinity.

It’s only when a country knows what it stands for and what it wants that it is able to choose leaders who are in harmony with such a national template — and who are therefore able to propel it to achieve its aspirations.

These divisions have been allowed to fester and poison the well