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Issue 09
WINTER 2020
ED’S LETTER
The SPIRIT that defines us
a government to serve, not create an army of fat cats wouldn’t have Cyril Ramaphosa’s job for all the preoccupied with self-service. Now is the time, more than tea in China. Sometimes I imagine he’d rather not ever, when we have to demand this. We always have the have it either. Fancy being the head of the motley right, nay the duty, to ask how every taxpayer’s cent is spent crew he leads. Some cabinet ministers are serial and about the wisdom of decisions made. under-performers who couldn’t run a spaza shop, At a time when people are dying of Covid-19 and poverty, contributing towards the view that the government hasn’t every decent person who calls South Africa home wants to covered itself in glory. And that was before the pandemic. make a positive contribution, to help Cyril Now in a life and death struggle we have to Ramaphosa’s best efforts to lead us through take direction from many people who do not this crisis. I pray he’s up to this challenge and enjoy public confidence. We have no choice creates the space for this. It is heartbreaking but to obey their often bizarre edicts in a to see how so many good people are trying so time of crisis. hard to keep businesses afloat, battling to save Excuse me, this is not meant to be a plug lives and livelihoods. Which is why Antonia and apologies if it comes across as shameless Deabreu and Marcelle Roberts grace the cover self-promotion, but I published a book a week of this edition. They are cheerful, industrious before this magazine went to print, entitled and tenacious. Hospitality is the face of the War Party – about how the ANC’s political tourism industry, one that KZN is so deeply killings are breaking South Africa. It explores invested in and for all the right reasons. The the party’s cadre deployment and how it has sector is reeling, but we have moved from inextricably entwined the ruling party and the bug-eyed terror at the pandemic to roundstate; how ANC battles have created a monster gregarde@gmail.com the-clock engagement on how to survive the of competing patronage networks; often onslaught. There are other important sectors of the KZN resulting in murder. economy also hit by the pandemic, but if one sector shows I wouldn’t mention it but for the fact that the book shows heart right now it is hospitality. I would have liked to have that some of the ANC’s harshest critics are in the ANC. Some dedicated the entire magazine to these stories of hope and of the most heartening responses to the book show how other, similarly deserving tales. They represent the spirit that people cherish our democracy and are prepared to hold will help us survive. those in power to account. They want an honest government and a vibrant civil society and a strong and independent media. They want scrutiny of public accounts, they want
