A hungry mob with nothing to lose
It is dangerous for any country to have a population that has nothing to lose even it were to go up in flames.
THE recent illegal land invasions near Umgababa have just reminded us all that we are sitting on a social gunpowder keg that will inevitably explode. I was reminded of July 2021 when most of the province erupted in violence, including looting, killings, and racial profiling.
I was brand new at the SUN, having started on July 1. Six days later, former President Jacob Zuma started serving his 15-month sentence for contempt of court. This sparked sporadic acts of arson by his supporters which quickly morphed into looting sprees after the easily-agitated general population saw a window to pillage and enrich themselves. The looting was opportunistic, and Zuma’s arrest happened when desperation in the country was at an all-time high. BEE policies and the raging Covid-19 had worsened the unemployment that was already dangerously high.
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According to the recent World Population Report, South Africa has the highest wealth inequality in the world. In simple terms, out of the 195 countries on this planet, South Africa has the widest gap between the haves and the have-nots. It is either you are rich or you are poor – there is virtually no in-between. All of this creates perfect tinder for unrest, and all that is needed is one tiny spark to set the country ablaze.
Depending on whose statistics you believe, up to 70% of the people between the ages of 18 and 35 in this country are unemployed. These people will gladly participate in anything to earn a few rands to buy a loaf of bread. From what I could hear on the ground about the Umgababa land grabs, the plan was to build houses fast on that land so that the eviction process could be drawn out in court. In the meantime, they could sell “their” plots to other buyers and make some money.
It is dangerous for any country to have a population that has nothing to lose even if it were to burn down to ashes. In his song “Them belly full (but we’re hungry)“, Bob Marley says a hungry mob is an angry mob. I don’t want to be seen as a fearmonger but I do feel these incidents of civil unrest are just a prelude to what is to come. Unless there is a willingness at the very top to change the plight of the people and do away with policies that only enrich the politically connected and leave the average people starving and desperate.
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