Was it worse under apartheid? Apartheid was a humiliation, a denial of citizenship and rights, but the level of corruption was less.
There is something to learn from European or quasi-European (Afrikaner) culture: personal integrity. It wasn't always followed, but the ideal was there, and gross corruption was the exception, not the rule.
Learn from your former oppressors.
6
The European decision to arbitrarily impose borders on what were essentially thousands of proto-nation-states will continue to reverberate down through the ages.
Every African country is basically a multi-ethnic empire. Such polities cannot ever hope to function with clean, representative government. They are simply too diverse to ever work that way, and they will always be ungovernable and corrupt, which is exactly what the Europeans intended.
2
In his book, "Inside AFRICA,"published in 1950's, when S,A. was still ruled by the verkrampt leaders of the National Party which codified, institutionalized separate development, John Gunther points out that it was the Afrikaners who created the first modern telephone system on the continent. Their material contribution to the nation, and S.A.'s emergence as an economic powerhouse for neighboring countries is undeniable. When purchasing comestibles in Dansoman , Ghana for the first time as a TFAer, I was struck by the fact that virtually every product came from South Africa. Majority rule, when it finally came, was that such a good thing for the average bloke?"On se demande!"Wrote an op ed published in Times newspaper on 10 August, 1976 based on frequent visits to Rhodesia--I had a teaching job in Bulawayo thanks to a chance meeting with ex P,M of Northern Rhodesia, Roy Welensky, in April 1965 and was there when Smith signed UDI withdrawing southern Rhodesia from the Commonwealth, and my piece was entitled "For White Rule in Rhodesia,"arguing that a gradual ,movement towards independence based on the Internal Settlement of 1978 under Bishop Abel MUZOREWA and the paramount chiefs was preferable to handing the country over to the Patriotic Front ,headed by Robert Mugabe. How many lives would have been saved,how much blood would have not been spilled?Alexander Harrison was prescient, and editor Howard Goldberg is to be commended for publishing my article. Remember Fanon!
8
I grew up in South Africa during apartheid and would always hear my father and neighbors discuss what would happen when apartheid ended. A common refrain was ‘ it will become just like the rest of Africa...’ 30 years later it breaks my heart that they were right.
23
Let's not forget that ANC inherited a system that failed South Africa's people and contributed to its impenetrable poverty of its majority. May God judge those all those who contributed to his evil. Past and Present.
1
This corruption is the fault of Mandela because he accepted a bad deal to end Apartheid. By leaving the White minority with their wealth intact and the Black majority still poor this was bound to happen. Before taking over the ANC should have demanded from the White minority a plan to place more of the wealth in Black hands. After all, we know that capitalism does not trickle down nicely.
2
Another good article on South Africa. Keep coming with more articles, and do not forget the other countries in Africa.
I have a simple question:
has the Press in South Africa become also corrupted or suppressed?
7
"Cry, the Beloved Country." They had a chance to get it right, squandered, what a shame.
5
The average IQ in South Africa is only 77. It is not possible to maintain a first world society with that.
As it stands, South Africa is a failed state well on its way to becoming a second Zimbabwe. Once Whites leave, the country will collapse or starve.
Only the inevitable Chinese colonization of Africa in the future will save them.
11
Sounds like boss tweed’s New York or Mississippi, Alabama and Arkansas at any time.
2
The New York Times needs to do a story of on the white farmers in SA whose land is being stolen from them and who are being brutally tortured and murdered (including children).
17
Corruption is endemic in Africa. Those that gain power routinely use it the economic advantage. Leaders care little for the poor or disadvantaged in their countries. NGO's only add to the problem in that they fill in the shortages created by corrupt politicians. One wonders how many billions of Bill Gates money was siphoned off in his noble effort to provide vaccinations and other health services to the poor of Africa.
9
It is a shame but your own people can take advantage you more than others. Others may try to keep you down. We like to think that people who are like us will look out for our interests. But they may be the worst offenders because they know us and know how to take advantage of us. They are trying to get what they deserve without regard to how this could hurt their own people. It is all about self interest.
7
This article exposes the biased reporting of the NY Times Africa bureau. The reporters span the continent for stories that portend chaos and mayhem. The reports promote such neo-colonial interests as white farmers deprived of their stolen lands, self-interested NGOs and white do-gooders, cynical opposition politicians, and predatory financial and extraction industries.
Rarely have reporters helped readers to understand the beauty and honor of everyday life. Rarely do they portray the the black people working hard to build up their countries, the ordinary teachers, storeowners, church leaders, local politicians, skilled workers and the like.
Fact is the Western press and society has lost all moral standing to make such judgements. The spread of Trumpism, Brexit, the culture of lies, economic inequality, spiritual decline, and social dysfunction makes African look good indeed.
5
@roger Would you live there?
9
Thank you for this excellent article. Lee Kwan Yew made corruption in Singapore his first target. He made sure public employees were well paid but the state considered an employee guilty of corruption if they had any assets that could not be explained by the public salary. Forget the lawyers and excuses. You are guilty. You go to jail and forfeit everything you have. It worked, although since his passing the system has deteriorated somewhat. It would take a leader of his quality to turn any country around. Of course, he has been criticized mightily for his racism, his elitism, and his dictatorial behavior but the problem in Africa as well as the USA is that we assume that if someone is racist that they cannot be right about anything else. By placing race first in both countries we are crushing progress, as pointed out by Martin Luther King as well. The corruption we see in Africa is not dissimilar to the situation in Detroit, Newark, Baltimore and many other central cities in the USA. This go around this disastrous governance problem is not staying in Africa due to a massive population explosion and this is what Europe and the USA face and will face increasingly in the future. With horror I am watching the Africanization of American national politics day by day. Just look at our congress and the Trump administration and the K Street lawyers that feed them.
6
The state capture by corrupt Indian businessman is a symptom of the corrupt ethics of South Africa's leaders. Not every state can be captured by poor businessmen from another world. That it happened is why South Africa has been flushed down the toilet. Articles like these can only sing the right ballads while the tragedy continues. I doubt anything can save this great nation with such great potential. It is sad to think what it could have achieved.
14
Gandhi suggested the Indian National Congress should be disbanded on it’s independence. It became a repository for corruption.
Such is the case with the ANC.
19
Corruption is the congenital political system of foreign colonial powers giving freedom to Africans with no sense of responsibility for having taken it by force. Black South Africans did not win power on their own, but were given “special dispensation,” as white South Africans called the end of white supremacy, for political freedom salted with expense accounts for the so-called “leaders” suddenly hailed as “heroes.” Of course, black leaders from Mandela on down were puppets of the very South African government officials and Western Powers wanting to avoid a regional conflict involving a gathering alliance between black Africans, the Communist countries and most of the Third World. The record (1950-1995) of United Nations annual votes against South Africa denouncing its racist policies, and the countries vetoing any punitive actions against South Africa, show the continent headed towards World War III.
Today’s corrupt political system in South Africa is one result of the successful Western strategy for a peaceful deconstruction of apartheid. So there was never going to be an ANC or black government free of corruption since the process of ending apartheid embedded the very corruption of the ANC to achieve a peaceful transition of power.
Just look at what happened in the years when the hand writing was on the wall, when black solidarity, social order, and codes of behavior seemed about to wrest power from whites if it were not given, as a corrupt bargain won a corrupt peace.
6
@Cato Actually, I cannot follow his line of thought (is there one?) at all.
You cannot eradicate corruption when its part of the culture. The idea of an uncorrupt government is an artifact of Western values.
Instead, "corruption" should be above board. Political positions should come with the explicit ability to take a cut of all expenditures. At least that way the costs of an election would be transparent - voters could vote for the less greedy candidate if they so desired.
1
@mannyv You can change the culture. Between the mid 18th and mid 19th Centuries the UK evolved a culture of personal integrity, later transplanted throughout the Anglosphere.
1
The saddest part of this story is that South Africa is one of the brightest stars in Africa. Kleptocracy is the rule pretty much thru-out the continent. It's one of the reasons that I almost never go to sub-Sahara Africa any more. It's so depressing.
With the sole exception of S. Africa (despite the rampant corruption outlined in the article) and its two "protectorates", Namibia & Botswana , everywhere else is either worse off than it was at the time of independence or MUCH worse off.
21
Don’t underestimate President Ramaphosa, and the many good people he has brought back into government.
The President is an excellent and very patient negotiator: this is his core skill as a leader. Since 20 December 2017 (only 8 months ago) he has been systematically consolidating his power and making the highest-priority changes. He is acutely aware of the limitations of his mandate, and has been very careful to balance and not overplay his hand. His personal integrity and good intentions are beyond question.
Leave the populist red herring of ‘expropriation without compensation’ aside. It sounds scary, but will never happen on any kind of scale. He needs this to shore up his left flank and disable the EFF.
In the meantime, he has been fixing the country’s balance sheet (thanks, China), asserting financial control, and putting top-quality, non-corrupt people in the most critical positions.
It will take a while, but will come right. Don’t underestimate President Ramaphosa.
1
Hope your insight will bear fruit. However l do not see it. The leaders of Africa are inherently corrupt and it's in their DNA. The continent of Africa will never achieve the distinction of being respectable . Simply put the leaders do not love their nation and the people they represent. Awaiting in the near future for the massive immigration requests from black and white Africans to Australia, USA, Canada and Europe. South Africa in the coming years will be a failed state relying on China's benevolent patronage. I just don't believe you.
8
"TIA" = This Is Africa.
8
South Africa (SA) needs introspection and resurrection after a decade of Jacob Zuma rule. The promise of freedom and bright future that followed Nelson Mandela becoming the first president of free SA is fading away fast.
The sudden and shocking loss of a top super star South African cardiologist and an A rated scientist Professor Bongani Mayosi (BM), Dean of the University of Cape Town (UCT) Medical School, one of the most known medical school in SA, exposes hidden problem due to a silent killer "depression"
Prof Mayosi was beloved for his leadership and his collegiality. He was a rare gem and a unique world renowned scholar who cared deeply about students and colleagues. His commitment to healthcare for the poor was unmatched. His keeping 1000s of South African hearts beating through his medical practice was outstanding. What is enigmatic is that after 2 years of depression he stopped his own heart.
With his funeral taking place earlier in the day in SA new questions are emerging and calls to have an inquiry are getting louder. Everyone who knew Bongani and was touched by his grace and generosity is both deeply saddened by the loss of this distinguished medical education leader, who received South Africa's highest award, the order of Manpungbugwe and baffled that he would end his own life.
The Vice Chancellor of UCT has stated that the University in which he rose to become Dean failed to prevent him from early departure from the world. Hamba Kahle (Stay well) BM.
5
Is life in Africa better or worse under "uhuru" than the first half of 20th century colonialism? You'll have to ask the Swiss bankers to verify, but I'm going with better under 20th century colonialism. Maybe we could have a college course called kleptocracy versus colonialism and we could all learn something.
16
This article exposes one of the disturbing truths of government: no matter how many speeches that are given, no matter how many promises that are made, corruption is embedded deep within it. While that might sound cynical to most, it's the only guarantee with any system of government, with South Africa being a prime example. Even when there is a fairly new revamping of the government, with the creation of the ANC, any system can fall prey to this poison. If a system made by such a person as Nelson Mandela can become this distorted, with money being blatantly siphoned from government programs and used by people like David Mabuza to buy power, then no system is safe. This is far from a new or localized problem, this has existed in every government since it's creation, however it's rare for it to be this visible. With school programs having their budget being tripled but seemingly appear to be halved, the only explanation is funds being redirected to more unsavory purposes. Through a combination of false promises, fabricated improvements, funds vanishing, and political assassinations, the corruption promised to be purged has only grown. With children dying from falling into pit toilets, plummeting test scores, and deplorably poor school buildings being constructed, Apartheid's reign has only changed names
30
@AJ G
It's the size and the lack of oversight, AJ G. Private industry is no different. We need two things. One is an anthropology of huge human organizations which studies the best methods of keeping corruption, embezzlement, fraud and pilferage at its lowest possible minimum, as these human tendencies will never be fully eradicated.
Second, we need a system of global regulation. The fact that none presently exists is giving us trillionaires and multinationals more powerful than governments.
4
I own a house in Capetown and spend part of the year there ... I am truly worried about what I am seeing. There was such optimism when I first visited 20+ years ago .. now there is real fear in the white communities for the future.
Mandela understood that he had to find a way to keep the economy of SA going as the country moved to what was clearly going to be black rule .. he succeeded -- but his successors have been more interested in self promotion and greed then building a great society, Now they want to take white farms. SA has the wealth for proper legal distribution of white farms -- squandering the wealth and lying to its people is not the way. The redistribution is way behind schedule as is the needed education reforms to insure success of the new black farms. Other African countries have actually courted white farmer who would gladly sell and move. The funds are redirected and stolen.
It's not looking good .. investment is suffering and the spiral begins. Almost 1 million whites have left since I have been here -- they now make up less than 10% of the population .. down from 17%. The black population has not been able to step in and run the economy
25
As a South African, I find this heartbreaking. There was so much promise in 1994 and the ANC have just squandered it to make themselves richer
47
@Lisa
...There was so much promise in 1994 ...
------- 90% of the black population had zero education. 50 % of the white population wanted to move away.
it didn't sound promising to me when i was there in '95, and it doesn't sound promising to me, today . . .
7
Last month I spent three weeks in South Africa. It was our first trip, and we spent time asking our private guides, black Africans assigned to the four of us traveling together, what they thought of current leadership. They complained about the looting of the country by David Mabuza and expressed hope that Cyril Ramaphosa will be a little better.
We visited Nelson Mandela’s house in Soweto Township of Johannesburg, where he moved after release from Robben Island off the Cape Town coast. We saw Bishop Desmond Tutu’s home on the same Soweto street. We asked to meet black Africans who were not government-employed guides or docents.
There was the same blend of outrage at Mabuza and resignation to Ramaphosa.
Education, with physical-plant overhauls and curriculum expansion beyond training for low-level tourism jobs, is an issue with every black African we met.
We also spoke with white South Africans of both English and Afrikaner descent at the hotels where we stayed, a vintage train on which we traveled part way and the restaurants where we dined.
Schools attended by white South African children are vastly superior and include good universities. Whites admit the disparity and call it “unsustainable.” They also mean South Africa imports too many basic products and has an income gap between whites and blacks.
The unstated subtext is a belief that being governed by a black majority incapable of electing honest men and women cannot be sustained.
The victims are being blamed.
12
Ah yes, you think so?
Its new leaders are the problem.
Brilliant of you to ask.
What's going on in South Africa today is nothing other than the same blueprint for plundering the nation's wealth that all other post-colonial African nations have used. While Africa is littered with nations who never tried to hide their dictatorships / presidents for life / heredity dynasties, this time it is happening in an industrialized nation, in slow motion and with a veneer of democracy.
The long-threatened land redistribution program will be the final act if they dare implement it. Once unleashed no one will be able to control it.
15
Disgusting indeed. I was dismayed when Ramaphosa didn't mention health or education in the budget speech (that for once South Africans wanted to listen to). The disintegration in these sectors is, however, fuelling deep, deep unhappiness in the urban poor. Which is great news because year by year the ANC is losing voters. In my community many people who were ANC supporters 5 years ago have shifted support. Our greatest need is a strong, ethical black opposition - because the DA is still seen as a "white" party. The ANC is slowly but steadily digging its own grave.
28
This South African story is a painful reminder of how the African tragedy, once Black rule is achieved, unfolds, once again :
After coming to power, comes the first phase of exuberance with high economic growth rates and general positive trends. Here, problems are not yet apparent as the country is still living off the fat of the past. The second phase comes as corruption and management errors lead to a general economic slow-down and more general unhappiness. In this phase, those in power put the blame on the past (eg. Apartheid) for most problems, to buy time. The third phase starts when the criticism gives rise to larger, justified miscontent. Those in power now consolidate their power by taking populist measures or use other means to manipulate or coerce the masses even while knowingly damaging the country. (eg. Nationalization and farm land redistribution from whites). Those in power also self enrich. This is the phase South Africa is in right now. The fourth phase is the inevitable economic decline, if not, collapse. Here, the oppression mechanism is strong (Zimbabwe is in this phase right now). Countries can stay in this phase for very long.. The fifth and final phase is economic recovery when good governance becomes established (eg. Ruanda).
Good Luck South Africa ! What a shame to see Africa's former powerhouse imploding. A total economic meltdown is almost certain now, perhaps in 5 to 10 years - and Ramaphosa is not going to stop it.
29
@Steve
"The fourth phase is the inevitable economic decline, if not, collapse. Here, the oppression mechanism is strong (Zimbabwe is in this phase right now)."
Zimbabwe is in the fifth phase - where a dictator du jour holds completely sham elections and there is no longer any pretense about the nature of the game.
2
Consider a scene in "Wolf Hall:" a young lady (named Jane) is worried about what she should do if a certain big bully, called the King, tries to have his way with her. She is advised to scream. But no, says another (Cromwell), no one will come to your aid. Instead: recite a prayer and so appeal to the conscience of the big man.
For this to work, even if to a very limited extent, it takes the efforts of generations to construct, internalize conscience, or that which comes with learning. Built by imagination, religion, education, the arts, etc., conscience can be dismantled too easily by, among other devices, a wrecking ball.
The wrecking ball is often the creature who climbs to the top of the political order by any means necessary, all else be damned, and indulges as he pleases without further if any thought.
When Athena grabbed Achilles by the hair to keep him from an impulsive, politically destructive action, and then tried to help him see the bigger picture, the greater context — that was the spark of imagination which helped begin not only classical Greek and Western civilization, but is also a necessary event any culture which wants a place in the emerging global civilization has to replicate on its own terms frequently enough, especially among those with power ... So that simply saying "Have you no sense of decency?" will work well sometimes, maybe not to shame the perpetrator, but to spark enough others to disempower, dump him.
12
The US is heir to the British empire. And. that is a heavy burden--the rest follows with an irresistible logic. The US hasn't learned how to play the game of empire, although it is an empire, although that very fact is not accepted. The plight of South Africa is just a part of the legacy that falleth now on American backs. Call the US a reluctant imperial giant!
1
@Dr. Nicholas S. Weber Nope, sorry SA is NOT the US' fault and not its responsibility, either.
31
@Dr. Nicholas S. Weber,
First, that is insane. The United States has never touched or played a role in the affairs of the European imperial powers in Africa. The United States did not 'inherit' anything from the fallen European imperial powers. Finally, empire is not a game, unless your life is circumscribed by television. The United States sends her sons and daughters to bleed and die in foreign lands, not for gain (leave that to France, and Russia, and Germany, and China), but "just because." Ask the people of Australia, at least the ones old enough to remember when Japan was on their doorstep. Ask the people of South Korea. Ask the people of Kuwait.
If the US is to carry the burden of correcting past imperial wrongs, how about some of you folks lining up behind us and, say, giving some rousing speeches at the United Nations? And while I'm at it, I am obliged and willingly offer thanks to the allies we do have who have stood by us, particularly now in Afghanistan (another former British Empire and Soviet fiasco). You know who you are (including both of the Irish soldiers); thank you.
4
My experience in Africa taught me that many issues, problems are more obvious there, more difficult to ignore, because they are in a metaphorical sense more naked, deprived more of the costumery of ideological, political obfuscations, ruses.
In this country, our schools are also inadequate, maybe to a lesser degree in physical structure, but obviously in financial support — while many millions, maybe billions of dollars are spent for the attainment of political power, money that is provided by tax breaks; and if not for those breaks the money could have gone to the schools. Only we hide the basic pattern better. We make complex obfuscations to fool ourselves better, lie to ourselves better.
15
Women of Africa and the world over, run for office. Run the men out and take control - it may be the only way to move forward to truly effective governments. We in the US are in the process now.
Men have ruled for a millennia and have mostly brought nothing but misery to feed their egos and need for power (Yes, I know there are exceptions but history's evidence does not reflect a pretty picture).
Rant Over :)
12
Reginah Mhaule, mentioned in the article, is evidence that women can be just as corrupt and enabling as men are.
Choose your leaders carefully, people of South Africa.
11
This article could have been written about almost any country in Africa. Corruption and gross mismanagement are the rule across the continent, undermining efforts at development and keeping the rapidly growing population in poverty, hunger, and ignorance. This has been the near universal pattern since independence from European colonialism nearly three generations ago, and grow steadily worse as the elites consolidate ever more wealth and power at the expense of the people.
Until now, corruption has affected only the citizens of Africa, but the combination of explosive population growth and grinding poverty drives mass emigration to Europe. Africa today has a population of one billion, on a trajectory to reach 4-6 billion by the end of the century. Even the best governed modern society could never accommodate that growth rate and maintain a decent standard of living; a society already failing its people, further exacerbated by environmental degradation and climate change, can only generate mass exodus. We are just seeing the beginning of that exodus today, with Europe already reeling from the political implications of mass immigration. Failure of governance in Africa has frightening implications for the rest of the world.
83
@Jeremy Bounce Rumblethud: And what is Europe doing about it? Just letting refugees drown has a minuscule effect.
@Jeremy Bounce Rumblethud
Which is why the major powers China, the US and maybe Russia needs to take over running these countries. Basically, the cultural development necessary to move Africa from tribal societies to modern societies is a gap too large to accomplish in a few decades. Further, the failure of African countries despite massive investment compared to the success of Asian countries after the end of colonialism, can only be attributed to the failure of African culture and values.
3
@Reflections9: Not to the far more rapacious colonialism of the Europeans in Africa? Think of the mass murders (especially in the Belgian Congo), the turning polity against polity to destroy the local governing structure, and -- let's face it -- the slave trade, which if you read about its effect on Africa was incredibly destructive long before the "scramble for Africa" in the late 19th century.
Old African saying: "When the bulls fight, the grass suffers."
9
The accounts of children being so neglected and abused is heartbreaking. The picture of the schoolkids praying is moving. There are so many good, smart, and ambitious people being wasted by this terrible, corrupt system.
I hate to say this, but it appears South Africa is moving in the direction of so many other African countries who are being run by corrupt, power-hungry leaders focused on amassing enormous personal wealth. I wonder when a South African leader will declare he's "President for life."
37
The spark of optimism that shines through from victimized, downtrodden dirt-poor South Africans is stunning in the face of seemingly perpetual and inescapable institutionalized abuse and repression.
6
Systemic corruption creeping into South Africa, and The whole of African continent, l feel it’s the beginnings of the end of Africa. l cry for the Africans people to have such ghastly people ruling their nations.
These leaders have no love or loyalty for their nation and their people. Shame on them. Goodbye South Africa, potentially you would have been a towering nation, the envy of the world. But alas this is not going to happen, due to leaders elect. Time to weep for Africa.
8
This is such a sad article. How many times have we seen this story repeated, not only in Africa but across the world? South Africans deserve better than the Zimbabwefication of their country.
22
This is the failing country that Obama paid homage to?! Corruption is rampant and people are suffering. Moreover, the government turns a blind eye as farms owned by whites are stolen by blacks. South African is turning into another Zimbabwe and Nelson Mandela is turning over in his grave.
47
Forget the "feel good." In addition to corruption as a way of life, S.A. is driving away the educated whites and taking the land of the white farmers. S.A. is going the way of Zimbabwe and every other African basket case.. ie down. Obviously.
48
In the Johannesburg airport last winter, I picked up a new bio of Ramaphosa, two days before his innauguration, whose dust jacket baldly stated that South Africa is on the verge of being a "failed state." When we hit Cape Town, it looked like a cross between Miami Beach and Malibu, but water was supposed to run out on May 1. And when I naively went downtown to see the South African art and history museums around the city's version of Central Park, I discovered the museums were closed, the park was filled with chain link fencing, and there were no people in the whole area except me, an equally dumbfounded couple from Paris, a South African white lady who said her husband was scouring the British Commonwealth for a job anywhere that would save them from South Africa, and a few vaguely menacing looking black drifters. Amazing to think of how sheer black corruption has not only destroyed everything Nelson Mandela and Tutu fought for, but also brought one of the most mineral rich countries on earth to the verge of collapse, behind the Potemkin facade of its Cape Town glitz. Of course every single house in Cape Town is its own strongly fortified "gated community." How grotesque!
51
Same in the US as far as wrist slapping corrupt politicians. If real judicial punishment were applied to the corrupt this problem would cease to exist.
5
Wrong, the two are completely incomparable. Dan Rostenkowski, the Speaker of the House at the time, served 17 months in jail for fraudulently selling stamps.
There is a long list of US politicians serving jail time for fraud and corruption.
4
I wonder where they learned this? You wouldn't think that living under a barbaric, white supremacist government for decades would cause any disruption in the normal evolution of ethics. Probably because they are acknowledged as being the receptacle of modern business practice and the country really would collapse if they slaughtered all the white people. And they would have to deal with our outrage. And actually if you look at the current Trump administration you see people just, if not more, corrupt.
3
@HT You are clearly a racist. Black people are and were not immune from corruption whether or not white people were in the picture. Africans are intelligent people not the ignorant dupes that you suggest. They have made their own unfortunate decisions. Totalitarian rule and socialism breeds corruption. Liberals have exacerbated the situation by pumping billions of aid into Africa with no accountability. The socialist elite benefit, the people struggle even more than under colonial rule.
28
@HTBlaming all of Africa's problems on the west is pure racism, the condescending assumption that black people are without will and agency, merely passive victims reacting helplessly to the external forces of history. By demanding total responsibility for all of Africa's misfortunes, well-meaning whites simply display their deep and unacknowledged conviction that Africans are incapable of determining or even influencing their own lives.
29
I almost hope there's a Hell, with a special place among the coals reserved for leftists who feed off the hopes of oppressed people like this. I mean, I EXPECT the Roberto d'Aubissons of the world to be well-connected, greedy, corrupt clowns who grab everything they can lift while yawping about subversives and commies and such.
But--and I know this is naive--I'm always disapponted when people from a once-heroic org like the ANC pull this stuff.
13
This tragic "parasite" that is systematically consuming South Africa is not surprising. It is the result of the ANC's virtual monopoly on power and the corrupting influence that absolute power wields when there is no credible opposition.
If black South Africans want a life that reflects the natural wealth of their country, they must first risk voting for something other than "Mandela's party". I have always suspected that Mandela's decision to only serve one term as president was informed by his wise realization that apart from the emotional symbolism of his life, he lacked the raw administrative skills needed to lead a modern, complex, emerging democracy. I think it is now it is time for the blacks in South Africa to come to the same realization about his old party.
42
" ... his [Mandela's] wise realization that apart from the emotional symbolism of his life, he lacked the raw administrative skills needed to lead a modern, complex, emerging democracy."
If only we here in the US had such a leader now. Alas, we don't.
7
This is not what Nelson Mandela intended. It was observed this week in a Times story about the presidential election in Zimbabwe that no revolutionary, founding liberation party in any African nation has ever lost an election.
That's because when they come to power they become totally corrupt, corrupted and corrupting.
The ANC is the largest, most striking example because it took control of the continent's largest, soundest economy. The biggest economy meant there was far more to pillage.
The ANC took power in the name of those millions in the townships but turned, after Mandela set a Washington-like example of teaching them "how to say goodby" (homage to "Hamilton") -- turned to become a fetid swamp of wanton corruption under his successors.
Everything the ANC touches has turned to dust and everyone it has elevated is a crook, without exception from what we read and have read. The new president is no different. He is one of the corrupters and enforcers of corruption.
In the townships? Again from what we read, little or nothing has changed, no advance has occurred for any but those who claw their way into the ANC ranks.
Everything is the same. Apartheid was a crime against humanity. Liberation has brought old crimes on a massive sale.
Until someone like former president Jacob Zuma, and all his henchmen pay with life terms, to expect progress in South Africa is a fairy tale.
69
In 2002 Kenya's KANU (Kenya African National Union) soundly lost to a new political alliance - The Party of National Unity. Although I will concede it was populated by dissidents from KANU.
1
@Carl Zeitz
"This is not what Nelson Mandela intended."
Perhaps, but it is what many people predicted...
5
"The dangerous conditions were a clear reflection of his control over the province, where millions of dollars for education have disappeared into a vortex of suspicious spending, shoddy public construction and brazen corruption to fuel his political ambitions, according to government records and officials in his party."
Maybe Mabuza needs to spend 27 years in prison like the man who's legacy he seeks to follow did. Disgusting. One has to wonder if South Africa, whether inside or outside of apartheid, will really survive in a way that treats its citizens as people and not fodder for the few to amass riches.
14
Looking at the experience of India,for example,after more than 70 years of independence,the end of corruption in South Africa is unlikely to happen in our lifetime.
14
[[When black South Africans become educated and middle class, their loyalty to the A.N.C. tends to wane.]]
There's the old joke, "A conservative is a liberal who has been mugged and a liberal is a conservative who has been beaten by the police."
But with regard to S. Africa, wasn't the whole point of liberation to enable social mobility? Fascinating that once people have found their voice a new overlord steps in to tell them when they are allowed to speak.
In the U.S., we can look at poverty rates and "free" school lunches and ask the question, "Who benefits from this system?"
Is it the children, or is it the corporations that stage the mega contracts to supply the food? How much of the food goes straight into the garbage?
Anyway, as in all things, follow the money.
8
From my experience with political change, the new politicians are simply opportunists who legitimately attack the corruption or incompetence, but are not out-and-out reformers.
Very few truly decent people get into politics. They are often reprobates who whose "handle" is patriotism and/or public interest.
However, it's important to recognise that this just a small part of human nature where the notion of "power" is probably the underlying driver. Meanwhile, most people are "followers" and want positive change. To their regret, it rarely happens.
6
Does anyone know of any good, non-corrupt charities that can train workers, build basic infrastructure, build houses and generally get stuff done? Its easy to find charities that talk a lot and maybe deliver food, but basic construction is disappointingly rare.
Esp SA needs all the support as its such a tent pole for the whole continent we need to make it succeed.
5
@Richard My cousin works for the US state department. They do tremendous good all over the planet. He helps plan infrastructure. He has worked in Africa.
3
Thank you for writing this piece. Good journalism, just straightforward reporting without any political slanting, snide comments or excuses. Wish we had more of this in this country and worldwide.
As to content .. left me speechless. But depressing as it is, pieces like this give me hope -- the perpetrators are called out and cannot hide behind any veneer of ideology.
17
@fc123
Agreed - excellent article - why I read the New York Times.
1
What an outrageous story of this supposed leader. Do these politicians possess a conscience or morals? How is this possible?
6
@Nic
No.
6
The problem was already stated by our oldest narrative text, the Sumerian/Akkadian "Epic of Gilgamesh" — that a ruler to be great has to defeat his bad self, overcome his own worst inclinations.
According to scholars, the Sumerian word we usually see translated as "king" would be more accurately translated as "big man" — a word common now in Africa in various languages.
Big men will tend to run rampant, out of control unless they are afraid of, and beholden to, a bigger big man, and the latter can be an imaginary one up in the sky; or a disembodied one inhabiting the laws and institutions of the land competently enforced and above personal predilections.
Taming, domesticating the big man is perhaps the central problem of civilization. Religion and the arts and entertainments have much to do with it ...
8
Innocent children's lives are destroyed because the "responsible adults" aren't capable of creating a functioning country in which they can grow up.
Why should South Africa's children (or Syria's, Somalia's, CAR's, Yemen's...) be forced to face this future because South Africa's adults have proven themselves to be incapable of running their own country?
Does there come a time when the incompetence and corruption of a country demands that it be put into a sort of "receivership" and an international body is empowered to intervene and restore order, justice and the rule of law?
15
International = less corrupt? I think not. Power corrupts, period. What we need is to develop new ways of governing ourselves; with stronger mechanisms for ensuring accountability and transparency (first step, ditch the party system for independent politicians only).
Evolution in our global political systems lags technological and economic advancements by eons. Highly complex modern societies cannot be possibly be adequately governed using structures that are in large part the relics of history.
In the absence of immediate alternatives, the best we can hope for is leaders with the unique combination of the ego to seek office, and the humility to appreciate their complete inadequacy to the task. When those two qualities are mismatched, you can get Zimbabwefication anywhere.
Of all the worthless cliches that we could improve our lot by never using again is the single word "vow" after any noun representing a political entity. Knights on Crusade in 1288 make a substantive vow. Pols for the most part just lie. And this is not to say that the use of the term is their fault, people seem to want to lap up impossible to perform pie-in-the-sky from politicians. Corruption is endemic journalists should deprecate the cliche, even the hapless "pray" is better.
"Political language . . . is designed to make lies sound truthful and murder respectable, and to give an appearance of solidity to pure wind." - George Orwell, "Politics and the English Language."
4
The ANC should take a moment of long reflection and ponder how they, as an organization and movement, that gave hope to so many and led a country with so much potential from apartheid to democracy, could become such a greedy, corrupt, and incompetent fulfillment of the worst expectations of the Afrikanners who opposed majority rule. Children dying in toilets while trying to desperately to learn in wrecks the local ANC is pleased to call "schools"? Outrageous and an affront to the memory of Nelson Mandela and the Struggle!
11
I can't focus on reading this article because the Who song keeps cycling in my head. But who didn't see this coming? Sadly not really a surprise.
6
@Jay
What? A Quick One?
1
I can't think of a darker indictment of any society than the image of a toddler drowning in feces at school.
South Africa is a fascinating place. The rich, lyrical natural environment is populated by a shocking juxtaposition of high end cities and waterfronts with incredible poverty in the townships, and racial tensions that the US, despite our problems, could not dream up in our nightmares. When I went to SA to visit my sister, who was studying there during the university protests of 2016, I was shocked by the contrasts in this country, by the incredible poverty to be found immediately outside the massive electric fencing protecting the rich, and usually white, compounds.
This article about the state of education in the townships and poorer regions is not at all surprising to me. The ANC, despite its storied history, is a complete disaster. Their corruption is incredible even by subsaharan Africa standards. Hopefully people will soon vote them out and SA can fulfill its promise as the rainbow nation.
23
Greed, corruption ,fake news, racism are the basic pillars for the foundations of societies that oppress human beings. This is heart breaking story after the soaring hope that was evident when Mandela finally walked out from prison. South Africa has had its share of issues and unless the political landscape changes rapidly South Africa will never advance into the 21 century.
We need to be voting and exercising our rights because America is at a critical time with the onslaught of racism, police shootings ,income disparities, assault on public health education ,social security, EPA regulations which are established to save our lives the safety net for all Americans is being abolished.
Immigrant children are being separated from their parents and put in cages like animals. Where are they? still missing. Daily diet of hate from an old man whose best days are over so now he lies about everything because he can not remember the facts and has made a deal with the Russians. With the help of the Koch brothers who are also resentful that anyone else should be well off now want to see the destruction of America as we know it.
We will work hard to ensure democracy means freedom for everyone and pay attention to what is going on with our politicians here in plain sight.
There are political people who are traitors to the Constitution and they are in plain sight there is no hidden state. Just very small evil minds.
7
Answer to title question: YES.
For democracy to work in Africa, it has to shed tribalism, which it can't seem to do. Where ever there is tribalism, the leader is obliged to pay favors, which automatically translates to corruption.
13
It is a simplistic idea to suggest tribal loyalties are the reasons Africans are failing at governance. The biggest problem is the the cheap allure of easy money from corrupt practices. If tribalism was that powerful governments like Kenya, would not have to steal ballots at election to time to keep power. In 2002 Mwai Kibaki in was elected in Kenya's only universally recognized free election. He was a Kikuyu supported by ,ost of all the large tribes. Five years later Kibaki supervised one of the bloodiest elections! Why? Wealth from corruption. Till today the west still blames tribalism but the real culprit was mega-corruption.
4
@Frederick: Tribalism is more complicated than you think it is, not necessarily related to ethnicity alone. In many cases it means survival. It's not always about pitting one tribe against another, but it does mean sharing, which in itself is not bad. If a brother has access to wealth, he is expected to share it. Since he can't share it with everybody, even though he was elected to do so, there is a priority when it comes to who gets what first. A leader can have the right motives, but easy money and pressure from those that want a piece of it is often too much for the best of intentions. Our system is becoming similar if you observe what happens when money enters politics. Tribalism is evident more than ever since Trump took office and everything he does is about money.
1
To stamp out corruption a very good first step is to pay the civil servants well, and establish a corruption investigation department that reports directly to the leader of the government.
Most importantly it must be impartial and show no mercy to anyone who is caught, no matter how important their positions are.
7
@Truth is out there - Good comment. If I may add one more thing. In order for the government to pay its civil servants a proper wage, it needs funds to operate. I.E. it needs to be able to collect taxes effectively. When the populace, especially the upper-middle and upper classes hide their income and don't pay taxes it impoverishes the whole country and leads to violence.
4
Leaders of Post Mandela South Africa especially in this decade have been part of the corruption problem. The current president, Cyril Ramaposa who is vowing to end corruption could be the right leader to get the job done.
6
@Girish Kotwal
He may indeed, BUT he leads with a razor-thin majority ( within the ANC), and Zuma's supporters appear to be inciting a fair amount of political shenanigans, esp. in Kwa-Zulu Natal.
7
South Africa offers the best and most contemporary study of the race differences viewed through the political prism. Children drowning in school latrines will sadly continue unabated.
8
This is a heartbreaking story, but, sadly, only one of the innumerable problems facing South Africa today. While the institutions of civil government remain largely intact after 24 years of democracy, one cannot but be apprehensive about the future stability and progress of the country. The authors allude to overwhelming problems in most facets of the civil service ( provincial and central ) but not all the issues of inadequate service delivery, in education, security and many other areas, are related to corruption; there appears to me to exist a fundamental problem of simple incompetence and inability of government ( at all levels) adequately to run the most highly industrialized Africa state.
The ANC's policy, from 1994 to date, of blanket affirmative action in the civil service has led to an almost complete collapse of institutional memory and competence, resulting in the kind of chaos only touched upon in this article.
I fear for the future of this beautiful country, and its peoples.
55
Well the majority of the country lives much better than before that time, so people shouldn't be too sad. What do you think?
People’s ability to find hope springing eternal even from a bottomless dry well is quite a remarkable human achievement. I’m not sure it’s very practical, though, but it’s all we got. Hence Apple’s trillion dollar allure
1
Human beings are self-interested. Most will choose their well-being above community - unless the "community" keeps the greediest under control. The world we live in today seems to revere BIG WEALTH and supposed power above all else yet they are destroying the lives of average people.
HIStory is one of death-destruction-WAR-rape-pillage-plunder - the male model for civilization.
WE THE PEOPLE - average people around the world must make it OUR story by electing/hiring Socially Conscious Women and men who will put community above personal power and control the greediest.
Why? Because the male model destroys civilization and the lives of average people. It is in OUR best interests to work together to stop relying on "government" to provide and together build sustainable communities that lift everyone and put "government" back to work for 99% of us.
16
@njglea: Power corrupts -- in government, just as it does in business, religious, educational and other hierarchical organizations. It stems from the nature of power, and the nature of those who seek and achieve it — not from their gender. That is why those enjoying power are best kept uneasy about displeased clients or voters possibly taking away that power. Never trust anyone with power, of either gender.
28
Yep. And one would have thought that a single name--Winnie Mandela--would have taught already that this mindless optimism abdout women's inherent decency is in fact mndless optimism.
But then come to think of it, patriarchy always taught that women were inherently the center of the moral.
6
Penseur, it stems from the MALE model for power.
Most men don't like it anymore than women. It's a cruel, destructive model.