So another election has come and gone under the African sun.
This time round, it seems even fewer people voted than in the previous five elections, raising questions about people’s sense of disillusionment.
Sure, there were glitches, as there will always be, such as fears of double counting and certain votes not being legal.
This is the usual story of elections throughout the world. There will always be concerns that the election was not free or fair. It is the nature of the beast, even in countries where we cling to the frail sense of reality that we are living in a democracy.
No matter our concerns or objections, the votes have been cast, and so we are heading into a future of uncertainty. Maybe the status quo of corruption and maladministration will continue, or maybe there will be a silver lining forming around the dark clouds.
Before the elections, one noted a lot of people turned to faith in a higher power to save South Africa from catastrophe, as it seems the opinion is that no government will be able to pluck SA from the mire of despair.
The elections are critical because the next five years will shape not only the country, but also the outlook of the youth, and it will determine if there will be a future for them.
And this pertains to the education system, for now more than ever, SA’s future rests upon its ability to provide proper education to all, which will ensure a skilled labour force to drive the economy.
An unruly, frustrated, morally corrupt and unskilled youth spells further disaster.
So, while we all are concerned about the SOEs, crime and corruption, the standard of education and the levels of violence should have raised a number of red flags.
Yet political parties hardly touched on SA’s moral corruption, even among the youth. Granted, we urgently need more sustainable jobs and houses, but we also need more schools and teachers equipped to raise the future labourers.
The other day a story from Florida, USA, made headlines when it was announced that a hugely unpopular measure to allow teachers to carry guns to their classrooms was approved by state legislators.
America is well known for its mass shootings at schools, and it seems people in Florida have now opted to arm their teachers rather than address the root of the violence.
The wide-ranging school safety bill expands the armed guardian programme, set up after the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School massacre, to include trained educators. The controversial bill could not be signed into law.
This has drawn a lot of criticism, with some saying armed teachers have no place in the classrooms.
There will be all kinds of Ts and Cs in place before the teacher can take up arms, but the fear exists the next bloodbath in schools will be caused by a teacher.
You have to wonder, how far is SA from such drastic measures? Are we not free-falling into an abyss of decadence and lawlessness?
Is our youth not on a path of self-destruction, which is evident from their behaviour in classrooms where teachers are under threat?
The government in place for the next five years needs to drastically address the state of our youth, because who knows, down the line we could also send children to school to be educated by armed teachers.
Such a scenario is frightening because what happens when a teacher is confronted in a classroom by an armed learner? The teacher might have undergone all kinds of psychological tests and firearm training, but in that situation anything is possible.
This might sound unrealistic, yet not for Florida, and in our country you can never say never.
As long as the government refuses to stem the tide of moral corruption, very soon our schools will become so unruly that the world will be writing about a bill passed in the once Rainbow Nation that calls for teachers to take an armed stand.
ALSO READ:
The purging that never ceases in South Africa
FOLLOW US:
For more #hyperlocal news at your fingertips, visit Benoni City Times, Springs Advertiser, Brakpan Herald, African Reporter and Kathorus Mail
