OPINION

The hate ANC mantra: My final response to Mr Nkhwashu

Linda Nobaza says that for a black person to be called an "ANC hater" invokes ostracism, fear and self-doubt

The hate ANC mantra: my final response to Mr Nkhwashu

Responding to Mr Nkhwashu has proven to be a futile exercise because he clearly reads a lot but unfortunately he "cannot read" (the reader is referred to my article and his response). Thus I will not waste the reader's time to respond to Mr Nkhwashu. However I would like to deal with one issue that has proven to be a common denominator among over-zealous ANC apologists, such as Mr Nkhwashu, when exposed, the "hate ANC mantra".

Dear reader, please allow me to share my thoughts on why these over-zealous ANC apologists resort to labeling anyone critical of the ANC government as an "ANC hater". This practice is a desperate attempt to shield the ANC government from criticism by invoking sympathy and anger among the oppressed black majority.

The ANC epitomize the struggle of the Black majority in South Africa. This is an organization that was formed in 1912 and subsequently led the struggle against racism and oppression in South Africa. This is an organization of Mandela, Tambo, Sisulu and other esteemed struggle icons. This is an organization that has won the hearts of the black majority pre and post-apartheid era.

By now, dear reader, you should understand what it means to hate the ANC. It means you hate the very fibre of our liberation struggle. It means you despise what Mandela stood for in the 27 years he spent in Jail. It means you piss on the graves of those who laid their lives for the freedom we enjoy today, including the freedom to writing this article.

Don't be fooled dear reader. These people are aware of the implications of being labeled an ANC hater. Besides the anger and rejection that you might encounter when labeled as such, it invokes fear and doubt within self. Am I an Apartheid apologist? Am I ungrateful to those who laid their lives for the freedom I enjoy today? These are some of the question you may ask yourself.

I refuse to be intimidated by the likes of Mr Nkhwashu. I call upon all courageous South Africans, Black in particular, not to allow this kind of bulling to condemn them into silence. To love the ANC does not mean to be oblivious of its short-comings. To have a different political orientation to that of Mandela does not mean you hate what he stood for. After all, the ANC was not alone in the liberation of this country.

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