When we least expected anything to come up, usually as a country we thought this day will roll over like other days gone by. However, after celebrating the peaceful mass protest around the country on 30 June 2026.South African as a country, and its people demonstrated the tenacity to keep peace and execute their campaign without hullaballoo or without any disruption. Those who were not part of the march were left out and they enjoy and keep the day as their routine permitted.
Before these paper delivers the reason of the protest. It is vital that after our democratic chosen government decided not to execute their mandate to the people on the ground. Present and past leaders the custodian of the people of South Africa and their failed the country. Instead of showing remorse and their shortcoming since the dawn of our democracy. They use their infamous trial and tested labelling theory. They accused the organisers of the protest by claiming unseen, unknown external forces as the individuals who are bankrolling the March and March campaign. Which of course is not truthfully and misguided especially coming from the rank and file of the ANC comrades. When the Steve Biko/Khotso Seathlolo/Murphy Morobe/Seth Mazibuko and others spearheaded the Soweto uprising. The internal and external ANC leaders label counter revolutionaries.
What made the 16 June protestors to fight and carry-on baton, was that they subscribe back then to a Black Consciousness teaching, pursued by Steve Bantu Biko, which change the narrative of the that time. Remember and recall that the Rivonia trialist had their own political determination which spoke about non-racial and diverse approach.16 June protesters were influence Black philosopher which, Blacks where require first to identify with being their own sole drivers of the challenge against the settler, colonial and Afrikaners imperial domination of South Africa.
When students’ leaders of that era went to exile to join the war against the apartheid regime. Others and those who got arrested and jailed and prison at Pollsmoor’s penitentiary and Robben Island. They were treated with mistrust by the old vanguard and were known and treated as foreign agents planted in the struggle to derail the emancipation of Blacks by the apartheid intelligence. Now with March and March leaders’ we find similar narrative that their leaders have an agenda of some sort. The March and March people and their leadership are given names by the governing who happen to be Black.
The respond from our mainstream political leaders and trade unions formation have also commented and the ruling party its wrong because of certain reason. The 30 June protester public, are staging their protest focusing on illegal immigration as a battle cry against problem engulfing our country. The prominent mainstream political formations are responding to the protesters with a long held respond that was use in the past in South Africa. Their anger and respond to the peaceful protest leave much to be desired. In a democratic dispensation as beautiful as our of course people have a right to freely express their opinion, views and ideas without fear or favour.
During the revival of the struggle against apartheid in the late 80’s and early 90’s. The People Poet Mzwakhe Mbuli, coined this phrase or line in one of his musical poems, that leaders are not born but are produce by the struggle. When the country was experience change on a serious note was the start of the political debates between the White and Black leaders across the country spectrum. Exiles and political prisoners from the liberation movement were released without and restriction and regulation.
General Lucky Nhlanhla Mkhwanazi name emerges again here. O6 July came and the press release from that day has left a huge change in the way South Africa do introspection as a country and a diverse society. Mzwakhe Mbuli decree in one of the lyrics in his songs spoke about,” No government can press a lid of a boiling pot forever.” Translation of this words has this metaphor given our country political challenges frankly speaking. The people of this country have had enough of the way the government of the country is doing things in the country. Failure to manage the public sector better and corruption has deepened the anger and frustration of the masses and the ANC leaders’ shenanigans in doing the right thing.
From thuggery, incompetence and poor service delivery of basic needs, wants and services to the country. Profound change brought by tools and instruments of mass media are astonishing from blogs, podcast, radio and television show right across is notable to put it politely. Transportation and receiving of information are at another level. Changing from the past communication process, is good and is an evolving phase that is open to tackle challenges against humanity in all sphere of life.
Th uniting issue and debatable crisis in our country is a hot topic now in all these tools. In all of this platform the failure of the present-day democratic government to notice the significant of these tools’ usefulness is fascinating. Discussion and talks being contested across these tools is the availability of the audience. Easily identifiable via using listeners participation as a measurement item. What we are going through as a country is change which is not that easy to be achieved especially if the obstacle is people who are supposed to assist the country to progress and develop.
We have the country rules and policies designed to disadvantage and affect the strong and weak, poor and rich of our country right across racial lines.
In the palm of our hands, we have technological tools that we retain as the human race. And these tools are powerful, huge and useful in our time to effect change in our way we want. Social mass media fundi and consumers are available and are covered all from young and old, educated or not so sophisticated also could raise the opinion. Mzwakhe Mbuli gave us guidance and spoke about this change which we are experiencing in all field of our lives.
What we have in March and March,Operation Dudula, and other civil society and political mainstream organization is part and parcel of change as highlighted by the past. Constructive outcome from all these changes signals a new direction for the country. Change in policing and running of the public sector industry even though those changes are few and not so visible sometime to everyone. Example here is senior police services staff being arrested, charge in a court of law. Fired, dismiss and suspended in both the judiciary dimension also.
Lesson that we must acknowledge as a country and the rest of the continent is that with numbers, any peaceful demonstration can bring about change. Using the South Africa landscape, we can easily demonstrate positive outcome of protest against the tyrannical rulers of the ANC regime. Porous border and immigration crisis is now debated differently unlike the past deaf approach of the past. Lastly the government of national unity is but one outcome of the citizens taking a stand against the ruling party that does not command a two third majority they use to have from 1994 elections.
By Lungile Nyembe (lungile100@gmail.com)
