ANC arrogance bodes ill for SA citizens and Africa

It was a barely noticeable little vignette, but it summed up we where are today as a country: President Cyril Ramaphosa stepping unsteadily on loose bricks around the grave of ANC founder Sol Plaatje in Kimberley yesterday.

The organisers had gone to the trouble of pitching a large tent and laying down the red carpet for the VIPs but hadn’t bothered to send in a bricklayer for a few hours to tidy up the grave. Not surprising really, given reports in the past of the neglect of the Plaatje grave, which seemingly only gets attended to when the political bosses need to summon the ghosts of politics past.

Yesterday was the 108th anniversary of the founding of the ANC and, as expected, the tributes flowed to those who went before – as did the rhetoric about how the party is still, almost 26 years after the demise of apartheid, bringing transformation to SA.

Around the partying politicians, though, the country is in disarray – largely thanks to the ANC’s governance since 1994.

Lindiwe Sisulu, minister of human settlements, water and sanitation (and a possible Ramaphosa rival), tweeted about the ANC: “As a political movement you have no equal on the African continent. You represent the hopes and aspirations of all progressive people on the continent.”

It is highly unlikely that other Africans – many of whom resent South Africans believing they are better than others and who are angered by our widespread xenophobia – will share that arrogant view. That arrogance bodes ill for both the continent and SA citizens.

Sadly, the reality is that this stupendous self-belief is nurtured by people voting for the organisation in election after election.

Hopefully, after the dignitaries have guzzled all the birthday cake, there may be a few candles left to help us through the load shedding.

For more news your way, download The Citizen’s app for iOS and Android.