In the Financial Mail (June 14-19) media raconteur, Justice Malala, obsesses about the same question that bugs me. Who in their right minds are prepared to carry buckets and buckets of excrement to dump at the premier's offices and the international airport as an act of protest on behalf of those who prefer buckets to portable flush loos? The question is: is Andile Lili doing it himself? Or is he hiring members of the township proletariat to carry out his sordid mission?
I can just imagine this committed activist knocking on the shack doors of his political constituency, asking who will donate their faeces to his noble cause. "Kunjani Comrade. May I relieve you today of your daily toilet duties and elevate your human waste to the noble cause of promoting equality?" "Seriaas?" "How much will you give me per bucket?" "Sure, comrade you can have two buckets for the price of one and I am sure that my neighbour will also give you two for that price." Off they go, gleefully disembowelling their buckets onto Cape Town's iconic public spaces.
I am reminded of an election campaign prior to 1994, where a right-wing Afrikaner, employed African guys to help them put up posters, which read: "Stem wit, vir haar ontwil." The poster displayed the face of an angelic-looking blonde white girl!
Just as the African guy had to do the dirty work for the HNP election campaigner, just so Marius Fransman exploits the poor for his own political ambitions, and this is the result. That ANC opposition politics has sunk so low can be squarely placed at the door of Fransman.
A master of gutter politics, he has inspired township residents to use any tactic and strategy possible to take over the Western Cape from the DA. Breaking up meetings, violent protests, and creating no-go areas for DA leaders are standard fare. Resorting to foul play, in more ways than one, is the only way he knows how to do opposition. His desperation is all-the-more drastic, given his race.
As a fat cat Minister, enjoying every privilege possible, he does not care a jot about the poor. What he does care about is being elevated from Deputy to Minister, and for this he must sell his soul for thirty buckets of s..., regardless of the consequences. In the process, he rolls back the culture of social cohesion Madiba tried to create through his visible acts of reconciliation. I remember well, when Madiba was released from prison, on his first visit to Mitchell's Plain, a coloured woman recklessly blurted out "what is this Kaffir doing here?"
As Cape Town reeled with shock at this crass racist retort, Madiba forgave her, saying he could fully understand where such sentiments came from given our history of segregation and political abuse. The same happened in Limpopo, when he wanted to visit a family in an informal settlement. They refused him entry, and after Madiba sent them his card and implored quietly to share himself with them, they felt so ashamed that they allowed him into their abode. Remember when he had tea with Betsie Verwoerd and Elise Botha, how enraged we were? Amina Cachalia recounts this story in her recently released book with great mirth.
Somehow Mandela had a vision, way ahead of our time, of what South Africa could be and he worked tirelessly to achieve it. Lower lights like Fransman need to grow up and emulate Madiba's statesmanship. Christopher Hitchens reminds wisely that "to be in opposition is not to be a nihilist"; equally Albert Einstein - "that great spirits have always encountered violent opposition from mediocre minds."
This article first appeared in Die Burger
Click here to sign up to receive our free daily headline email newsletter
