Category: Uncategorized

• The Budget Is Recovering. The Country Is Still Waiting.

  Oct 22

  Yesterday’s budget offered South Africa a strange kind of good news: the fiscus is recovering while the country remains stuck. Debt has stabilised, revenue has improved and the deficit is… more ›

• We Cannot Cut Ribbons Our Way to Industrialisation

  Oct 20

  South Africa has mastered the art of cutting ribbons while its industrial foundations crumble. Ministers unveil factories, investors announce billions and cameras capture another triumph of economic progress. Yet behind… more ›

• We Vote on 4 November. They Bargain on 5 November.

  Oct 16

  South Africans now know how to vote a dominant party out of power. What we still do not know is whether our political parties know how to govern once power… more ›

• The Law That Promised Transformation but Could Not Listen

  Oct 14

  Parliament set out to transform who benefits from the billions the state spends. Instead, it produced a law that could not survive a basic test of democracy: listening to the… more ›

• The Party Is Expensive. Being Left Out Costs More.

  Oct 9

  South Africans are not spending hundreds of billions on celebrations simply because we cannot do arithmetic. A wedding, graduation, unveiling or homecoming buys more than food, décor and photographs. It… more ›

• Eskom Survived Load-Shedding. Now It Must Survive Success.

  Oct 8

  Eskom has achieved something many South Africans had stopped believing was possible: it has restored operational stability to a public institution that appeared trapped in permanent crisis. But recovery has… more ›

• Before South Africa Reopens the Gallows, It Must Answer the Hard Questions

  Oct 1

  The death penalty debate is not about whether murderers deserve sympathy. Some crimes are so heinous that those who commit them may seem to forfeit any moral claim to it.… more ›

• The ANC’s Courage Stops at the Minister’s Door

  Sep 25

  The ANC has discovered a principle: public officials must resist unlawful political instructions, even at the cost of their careers. It now wants Fannie Masemola called to account for failing… more ›

• We Are Wearing Our Heritage Better Than We Are Teaching It

  Sep 23

  South Africa celebrates its diverse heritage each September, showcasing cultural traditions and performing languages, yet a critical issue emerges: many cultures can be performed without effectively reproducing their knowledge. A… more ›

• We Cannot Argue Women Into Feeling Safe

  Sep 18

  Nine women’s bodies have been found in and around Ekurhuleni. Yet part of the conversation has become an argument about whether police should warn women against running alone. The warning… more ›