Archive for the ‘election 2009’ Category
Wednesday, April 13th, 2011 |
I was thinking about whether to write about politics again – with the elections coming up on 18 May.
The first time I blogged about it in 2009 was so much fun, it provided me with the direction I wanted take this blog.
Oh, the nostalgia!
The late night debates with people who were as likely to change their votes as I was. But to be fair there were one or two who were conflicted about who to vote for and why.
I was called an idiot a few times. A lot of times by one person, in particular.
That upset people close to me, but I didn’t mind one bit.
I banned him eventually, when all did was to spam me with the same message many times per day. The first and only time I had to ban someone on this blog.
I gave as good as I got most of the time, though.
But since then the fun has pretty much gone out of political discussions. The vitriol is not something I want in my life anymore.
Come 18 May, I will be voting ANC, as I usually do. There is no doubt in my mind this time.
The alternatives are not an option for me. Maybe if the Independent Democrats were truly independent they might have been an option.
The Democratic Alliance has no chance at all of getting my vote.
So with decision made, there is nothing left to discuss. We (and I include myself here) are no longer open to others opinions.
Which is a pity, because it seems like we’re as polarised as the USA and other countries. There is no middle ground anymore.
The Congress of the People might have provided that option, but since their spectacular rise and fall, we’re left with only two real choices.
My decision about whether to blog about politics or not, was up in the air until yesterday when Gareth Cliff’s Facebook feed appeared on my screen.
All he did was to wish President Zuma a happy birthday, but the responses he received were mind-blowingly rude! And that’s an understatement.
Who are these people who are so mean-spirited they can’t wish someone a happy birthday? Are they in the shopping malls I frequent, do I pass them on the streets? Are they family, friends, colleagues or neighbours?
So that was that.
I would prefer to live my life on my little fluffy cloud and believe the lie we told the world during FIFA’s soccer world cup in 2010, when we provided them images of us as a nation of smiling faces.
Posted in election 2009, politics | 2 Comments »
Sunday, May 3rd, 2009 |
Our former president Thabo Mbeki apparently congratulated president-elect Jacob Zuma on his victory at the polls, or so we hear from his spokesperson .
Anyone who heard his chat with reporters on election day wouldn’t have a clue who Mbeki voted for - which of course is his right.
When asked about his voting choice though, Mbeki offered an answer so ambigious it wouldn’t be hard to imagine that he penned his own name on the ballot.
In retirement Mbeki is no more or less of a mystery than when he was president of our little republic.
Rumour has it that Mbeki wanted another Zuma to succeed him as president – Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma , Foreign Minister and former Health Minister. Alternatively Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.
And what little we know of Thabo Mbeki, magnaminity wasn’t one of his virtuous.
So we can only imagine how that offer of congratulations to his nemesis went down.
We can only wonder if paced his study in his brand new secured house somewhere in Gauteng while downing a bottle of expensive brandy and wrote a letter like he did in October after he was recalled.
Or did he just down the brandy and command someone one his staff (the cleaning lady,perhaps) to write congratulations blah, blah, blah on his fancy letterhead, stamp it with his signature and send it to Luthuli House?
However that letter got to Zuma, he probably doesn’t care one way or the other.
Instead of playing childish political games, Thabo Mbeki could be doing so much more to grow COPE or by heading an IDASA like organisation, instead of keeping up appearances that no one is buying.
South Africa needs a strong opposition and it needs to come from strong African political roots.
Posted in election 2009, politics | No Comments »
Monday, April 27th, 2009 |
During the elections some commenters on this blog asked me what I would do if Helen Zille and the DA won the Western Cape provincial elections.
Well, I kicked my imaginary cat – twice…and then moved on.
Even though I don’t think Mrs Zille is the best option for the Western Cape and that she will further polarise the city into white and black, I have always maintained that I believe in our democracy.
I do believe though that having a premier that I have not voted for, representing a party I do not identify with in any way, will make me a much better, more vocal citizen.
As someone who lived in this province all my life, I will be watching her majesty like a hawk, calling her out on any shortfalls, especially on the Cape Flats and in townships as 49% of the Province did not vote for the DA.
I will continue to comment when Mrs Zille gets on her high horse and speaks down to people who don’t agree with her.
My hope is that the ANC will be a strong opposition, as they were before taking over the provincial parliament in 2004.
I also hope COPE gets rid of Alan Boesak who cost them at least 2 votes that I know of, finds their identity and for the sake of their own survival to not enter alliances with either the ANC or DA.
I would wish the new premier-in-waiting well, but I would be lying.
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Friday, April 24th, 2009 |
So after collecting our free coffee at Wimpy in Kenilworth Centre, my sister and I headed to Mitchell’s Plain to visit our aunty.
I felt a bit guilty about the way my last conversation with my aunty in Mitchell’s Plain had gone.
The two of us have not been getting on well during entire election seasons since 1994. In case you don’t already know, my Mitchell’s Plain aunty says I think I’m black, because I support the ANC.
According to her coloureds are coloureds and not black.
I told her to just look at the colour of my skin, but she hasn’t been buying that.
Since we’d all casted our votes early in the day when the lines were short – a family trait – my aunty suggested we go to a local shopping mall for a free Wimpy coffee.
We like free stuff in our family, something which we all chuckled about on our way to the mall. My Mitchell’s Plain aunty didn’t think Wimpy would mind if her nieces had another free coffee.
After showing off the ink marks on our thumbs, my aunty and I settled on a bench in the mall while my sister browsed shoe stores.
We discussed the gorgeous weather Cape Town was blessed with on election day and we traded voting station stories.
She had been first in line at the local primary school in her corner of Mitchell’s Plain, something she was proud of – this after spending half the previous evening at the hairdressers to get her Helen Zille pouffe in shape.
We traded family gossip and discussed the Stormers. She thinks Rassie Erasmus must go and that Jean de Villiers should rather be relieved of the captaincy!
Actually we had a very pleasant chat, then walked around a bit more before we had to head back home.
Not once did we talk about politics – that’s all in the past now. We’re back to just being family.
Until next time – 2011 when local elections come around.
Posted in election 2009, politics | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, April 22nd, 2009 |
On a day when most voters have been in celebratory mode, DA Leader Mrs Helen Zille hit a sour note with her bitter rant on Capetalk radio.
Obviously no one but her royal highness could run the IEC, because as she says, they cannot even run a bath.
In typical Zille fashion, she angrily implied that the IEC deliberately sabotaged polling stations in 24 DA strongholds by not having enough ballots, preventing DA supporters from voting.
Never mind that the IEC’s mistakes were felt in townships as well – where long lines of people waited patiently for hours to cast their vote – certainly those are not DA strongholds.
Are township people not as important as those in DA strongholds?
One can only wonder why the IEC would single out her majesty only, since none of the other opposition parties complained in quite such a venomous manner.
In fact Patricia De Lille just 5 minutes before was generally satisfied with the way things were progressing.
Oddly enough, most people who called into Capetalk – likely a DA listener stronghold on its own – had positive stories to tell about their voting experiences.
Though one would expect that the IEC do their job properly and see that every polling station in every polling district would have enough ballots to cover all registered voters, mistakes are bound to happen.
For Mrs Zille to claim deliberate sabotage is what we’ve come to expect with her delusions of grandeur – being the only one able to lead the IEC, every city, province, the country and doubtlessly the whole planet.
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