Mr Delivery? No, not the service you call on a cold rainy Sunday night when even a trip to the local take-out seems too much to bare, I am referring here to the man who was to lead us to the promised land. Nelson Mandela had prevented a civil war, lead us through the transition, and brought us back into a world that welcomed our new democracy with open arms. And then he did something truly remarkable… he stepped down! Feeling that his work was done, with his legacy in tact, he made way for Thabo Mbeki.
No one expected Mr Mbeki to have the same style as his predecessor, after all he had a job to do. He was to lead us out of the Euphoria and into the reality. He was to guide us through the hard work the nation had to do in order to take it’s rightful place in Africa and the World. He was going to deliver jobs, housing, a thriving economy, he was going to deliver Africa to the world… then he got a little too caught up in his own press!
The man racked up more frequent flier miles than anyone before him. He became the globe-trotting president of South Africa, an international traveller and world statesman. He had a solution for everything, quiet diplomacy for Zimbabwe, turnips and potatoes for Aids and denial for just about anything else. There is NO crime, NO housing problem, NO inflation, NO aids problem, NO corruption and most importantly NO leadership when we need it most!
I could join the calls for Mr Mbeki to step down, to take an early retirement and allow someone else (anyone else at this stage) to show some direction and leadership, but I am realist… this will never happen! After all here is a man that entertained thoughts of an amendment to the constitution to prolong his reign in power and when he realised that would not work decided to try to hang onto power through the leadership of the ANC. That ended in just a little humiliation.
When the MDC almost won in Zimbabwe, you were almost able to deliver your ‘I told you so’ speech. But alas your mate Mr Mugabe didn’t read the script and you sat back and assured us there was no crisis, I for one felt so much better for hearing that. I had that same warm feeling when Minister Pahad assured us that the stories out of Zimbabwe were fabricated and that the government was not to blame for the Xenophobia and was doing all in it’s power to curb the violence and take care of the foreigners… for heaven’s sake, pull the other one!
Your “we should be ashamed speech” the other night did exactly what your previous speeches have done… leave people shaking their heads in disbelief and reaching for a calendar to start counting down the days to the next election in 2009.
Oh well, Thabo, we are stuck with you for another year or so, try and mend your image if you can, try and be remembered for something or anything other than your failure in Zimbabwe, your stance on HIV and your absence when we needed you most… that alone should keep you busy for a while. In the mean time we will get on with the business of living from day to day and hope your successor is able to deliver, after all… better late than never.
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