The South African Presidency has recently defended their decision to send a three hundred million rand food aid package to Zimbabwe despite there being a contravention of the terms of the agreement. These terms were the creation of a power sharing government between the Zanu PF and the opposition party, the MDC. Even though this clearly has not happened, according to the Ministry of the Presidency (run by a top notch mongoloid you might all know as our previous health “minister”, Manto Tshabalala Msimang) the “situation has worsened” and this allows us to ignore the blatant human rights and democratic violations that are occuring up north in Zimbabwe.
I’ve realised that South Africa is clearly not being affected by the global recession and it’s all a big ploy by western agents to make people not vote for the ANC in the elections next year. Jokes aside can South Africa as a country afford to spend so much money looking after our neighbours when we could solve a couple of poverty and education issues locally? It’s a sad commentary when a handful of African leaders will speak out against a tyrant like Mugabe while the others sit back and send money to stem their guilt due to betraying their fellow Africans.
The people in Zimbabwe are struggling but clearly the situation isn’t bad enough there. People are hungry but apparently aren’t starving. Hungry people are complacent, starving people cause revolutions. The people of Zimbabwe themselves need to rise up and solve their own issues. South Africa sending food aid is great from a humanitarian point of view but realistically it’s not going to solve any problems. Clearly the South African government is madly in love with Mugabe as they keep propping him up no matter how many world leaders denounce him. Frankly it makes us South African’s look like idiots in the eyes of the rest of the world.
The old adage applies here: rather than giving the Zimbabwean populace a fish that will feed them once, rather give them a few fishing lessons so that they can feed themselves. Surely the South African government can follow the lead that other Western governments have taken and cut Zimbabwe off completely. Mugabe can only exist with his South African allies keeping his people fed.
You’re shaking your head and thinking, “But Saul, people are hungry there. Have some Christmas spirit and be okay with them sending your hard earned tax money to Zimbabwe”. I say that’s rubbish and we should stop sending money out of guilt. This is no gift but a bribe so that the South African governments concious is absolved.
Enjoy this post? Subscribe to my RSS feed.
