President Zuma- ” this is where the difference comes” and it is!!!!
Looking back this week at what transpired with our president, with him now going to court to entrench his right to dignity, and stop the Goodman Gallery showing his portrait “the spear” and by doing so taking on the right to freedom of expression, I would like to take this opportunity just to step away from the current band wagon and just look back and see how did we get here.
How did we get on this degrading track regarding our president? Why is he depicted like that? As an artist Has Brett Murray lost it completely? I mean why cause all this fuss?
Freedom of exception:
Now our president has had a colourful career with his ascension to his office with allegations after allegation he has never been to court! And we as the public see this.
Our president flaunts his culture in the public eye. Is this wrong? No it's his right; after all he is a Zulu man and a important one at that, but is this good for him if it is done in the public eye? (I am not so sure.)
All of this the corruption allegations, the political storms around Julius Malema, the amount of wives and children he has; the way he talks it all creates a perception of who the public thinks our president is as a person.
Before the” spear” our president has been the subject to many of Zapiro’s cartoons depicting him with a shower head growing out of his back always hovering above the president like a halo . Wonder why? Oh yes the shower explanation at our president’s rape trial.
Now all of this happens in the public eye and on top of this South Africa as a country is being downgraded by ratings agency’s cause of the Zuma administrations direction they put the country in financially, and on a weekly we have service delivery protests around the country.
All in all the total picture out there is not very positive
“This is where the difference comes”:
The ANC ruling party has in the past , voted in leaders of grate distinction.
Statesmen you could present to the country , who have taken this country and people’s perception of the country to better level ,I mean just look at president Mandela legacy, he is still today putt up on a pedestal, and why not although, he is now retired, he is still regarded al one of the world’s best statesmen and regarded as a hero to the world. Then there is former president Mbeki who with his economic policies really made a deference, I mean during his administration we saw projects, begin like the Gautrain our country at the time were governed in such a way that we were able to bid successfully for the world cup, the road building projects the stadiums .just to mention a few although. He had his bad things as well like the issues of treatment for HIV he handled badly, however he in total was n better statesman than our current President ,Mr Mbeki is still busy today with work as a diplomat for the AU and is regarded a s a peace maker on the continent .
The same people who brought us Mandela and Mbeki is responsible for bringing us president Zuma. But how is this possible that they went for what is perceived to be a lover calibre of leader? “This is where the difference comes ”President Zuma is not necessarily a lover calibre leader ,his problem is his perception that is portrayed by the media and the reason for this is because he has and always will be a they guy who washes his dirty laundry in public . Why do we care if the president gets married again, why do we care who he dates, why do we care about that silly painting why do we care at all?
Is it really any of our business? Of course it is!!!!!! , you see being the president mister Zuma chose to be a hi profile person and ruling the country of course us normal citizens would like to know what type of person is leading us ,after all this is the only way we as a nation can decide if we really want a leader like the current president .
The Spear (minority taking it to far)
The spear , was done deliberately, and it was done for the following reason in my opinion. It was done for the sensationalist shock . Not necessarily to de grade the president but to get a shock reaction out of the ruling party and the president. It’s sort of saying HAY PULL UP YOUR SOCKS!!!!!!! And it was successful. It got people talking about the president’s dignity. I do not believe just because the president is in a position of power therefore I should automatically respect him ,no respect has to be earned and if the president wants my respect and the respect of people in general he has to start portraying himself as the statesmen we deserve .and we deserve the peace maker the caretaker the father ,the husband ,the best person for the job!!!
Our next leader:
Our next leader will be chosen later this year in mangahunge it may be we choose mr Zuma again ,or it mite not, At this conference the party members will choose who leads us for the next five years, it is a given that the ANC will win the next election so effectively the one who gets the party leadership will be our president . All I have to say in this regard is you deserve the people you put in ,if you put in a person like JZ you can expect, controversy ,but should you decide on a person like Mr.Tokio Sexswale you can expect gait differences, this is how I can tell ,I looked at what the press is saying about him, he is a person who has my respect just like mr .Mbeki and mr Mandela
and he has earned it with his good character ,and the way he portrays himself.
So if you are amongst our country’s elite party members who will be making important decisions regarding the future leaders remember one thing ,and that is you will be stuck with the leader for the next five years
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