Picture File: A disgruntled member of the ruling African National Congress (ANC) holds an ANC flag during a march to Luthuli House, 15 July 2022, in Johannesburg. Picture: Michel Bega
It has been a year of marches, placards with anti-government messages, whistles, vuvuzelas and the chanting of “Amandla!”.
Thousands of marchers joined in the action this year and supported various unions and organisations as they called for change and transformation.
Some of which were not unreasonable at times but in vain considering the state of the country, the corruption and the poor economic growth.
The list of reasons provided many headlines in the past year. The political front did not disappoint, considering the various motions of no confidence and strikes against opposition parties.
Political parties also took to the streets about society’s experiences of service delivery, inflations, living costs and social and economic struggles.
One such was the ANC’s most recent march to Tshwane House about the poor service delivery in Pretoria under the Democratic Alliance (DA) leadership.
The DA hosted many picketing outside government buildings calling for the heads of Police Minister Bheki Cele, the Cabinet and President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) hosted various marches, strikes and picketing actions ranging from government officials to embassies and parliament against Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana’s national budget.
Three things were certain at an EFF march; a big turnout, a memorandum accompanied by an intense speech and the probability of being recruited to join the party followed by the occasional marriage proposal.
However, the ANC march was by far the most impressive because it illustrated the undying loyalty and support for the ANC.
It was unwise to underestimate the biggest party in South Africa because there was a reason they were still in control: the ANC comes in massive waves of supporters from old and young who were far from finished fighting for freedom.
Besides the number of supporters for the march, the energy of the crowd far exceeded those on the opposite side of the colour wheel.
The colour of the organisation worked similarly to those of the weather warnings: when you have an alert level of red or yellow you knew there was a chance of disruptions and scattered thunder or tantrum showers.
Most of these marches led to sweet nothing and will probably lead to more marches in the new year. The handing over of memorandums can be compared to the legend of the missing sock or Tupperware container lid.
The mystery of its final destination or outcome remains cold and unsolved like the thousands of criminal cases.
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