The Rep 13 May 2022

6 Tel: (045) 839-4040 / editorial: mjekulal@therep.co.za / advertising: charodinev@therep.co.za 13 May 2022 THE R E P R ES E N TAT I V E
All about the
election
For thousands of years nations or tribes were ruled by one man
who passed on the baton to his lineage and so on and so on. The
same thing happened throughout our civilization. Only men with
means had any say on the running of their day-to-day lives, but
the main ruler still remained supreme.
With the advent of democracy this changed here and morphed into
what we have today, especially after 1994. Do we have a proper
understanding of what elections are and what they are meant to do? Do
we treat elections, whether intra party or inter party, as self-standing
events or do we approach them as what they are supposed to be?
It is supposed to be a sober analysis based on facts and figures without
emotions and any other peripheral influences like money.
That is what democracy calls for us to do. Do you think, judging by
way we are behaving when it comes to elections, that this is what we are
doing and understand to be our role?
We had local government elections only last November and things in
the Enoch Mgijima municipality have gone from bad to worse. A whole
swathe of areas had no electricity for a full two weeks and the
municipality was running around dousing fires, literally, everywhere.
The transformers are failing and some are burning, costing hundreds of
thousands of rand. The same people who were in charge before the
elections when the same issues were common were voted back. Do we
use elections as a tool to evaluate the performance of the elected?
Last weekend the ANC held provincial elections and the incumbent,
Oscar Mabuyane, and his secretary general,
Lulama Ngcukaitobi, were returned to their
positions. The conference went on from
Friday until an extra day on Monday
because of numerous disputes and even a
court action. The elective conference every
five years is supposed to evaluate the
previous five years, look again at policies
adopted and possibly discuss, extensively,
new policies to take the organisation and,
by extension, the province forward.
IN TOUCH
Phumelele P Hlati
In those three days and extra, did they
do any of that? Were any policies discussed
and adopted?
Sadly, as we have seen, elections were
the main issue in the conference as the
whole weekend was spent haggling over credentials and who was
supposed to vote or not. The conference needed an extra day, a working
day for all of them, in order to complete just one item - elections.
This is an indictment of the organisational capabilities of those tasked
with running the organisation on a day-to-day basis and yet the delegates
returned those people. So what can we read about this kind of ANC
conferences? Do they serve the purpose they were meant to?
Can we trust an organisation that cannot sort itself out to solve the
diabolical state the Eastern Cape municipalities are in? Has the ANC been
crippled beyond repair by the politics of personalities, power, patronage
and money? “They have money, they have everything. Take the money,
but do the right thing,” Babalo Madikizela said. Were these words an
indictment of what ANC conferences have become or were these just
sour grapes?
The right to vote comes with responsibilities and accountability - liking
a person more than the other should not be the only basis why we vote a
certain way, surely. Voting for the ‘devil we know’ or a ‘better devil’
should not be the basis.
KOMANI WEATHER
The weather we are experiencing at present often leads to people saying
‘what a lovely day so we should enjoy the milder daytime temperatures
and almost still wind and make the best of the chilly evenings while we
can. On Friday the minimum temperature will be 6°C and it will be mostly
sunny, with a gentle wind. The maximum temperature will be 23°C.
Saturday will start off at 6°C and reach 21°C at the maximum. There
will be a few clouds about, but no moisture is foreseen and there will be
just a gentle breeze. The humidity will have crept up somewhat by Sunday,
but it will be mostly sunny and there will be just a gentle movement of air.
The minimum and maximum temperatures will be 7°C and 19°C. -
w w w. a c c u w e a t h e r. c o . z a
SOCIETY SNIPPETS
From birthdays to anniversaries to achievements to notices ... Share your
information with us:
mjekulal@arena.africa or fax (045) 839-4059
Festive birthday wishes to Rosanne Weakley, Ann Field, Mariska, Jennifer and
Jonathan Cloete, Tyla Jade Warne, Morgan Catto, Chané Kriel and Vernon
Viljoen (May 14), Amy Cloete and Lauren du Preez (May 15), Ingrid Taylor,
Dawn Bennett, Mark Bennett, Louis Sinclair, Corneel Venter and Anna Jordaan
(May 16), Erlank Nel, Azola Mabengwana, Claire Fincham, Pat Stafford, Jaco
van Zyl, Raymond Muller and Rudy Nortje (May 17) Sonja Raasch, Luke
Goldshmidt, Tyrone Lottering, Anu Joseph and Colleen Meintjies (May 18), Jill
Haxton, Ashley Fincham, James Harvey, Busiswa Mteti, Virgil de Koker and
Tharlita Goeiman (May 19), Catherine Bennett, Paul Coetzee, Gareth Hall,
Johnny Moutzouris and PJ Cloete (May 20), Nokuthula Ndinisa, Juan
Richardson, Rina Rooi, Dawie Davis, Allan Fisher, Schalk le Roux and Dina
Pietersen (May 21), Pierre Jacobs, Thandiwe Hanisi, Jay de Wet, Jonno Russell,
Anthony van Oosten, Zuziwe Tyolweni, Dave Nyathi and Charles Richter snr
(May 22), Joe Makowem and Marc Bradley (May 23), Belinda Dangerfield (May
25) and Jacques Rossouw (May 27).
Condolences are extended to the families and friends of Lizo an Ayanda
Witbooi, Nosisi Ziya, Mandelkosi Sihlahla, Vuyiswa Fuba, Ronnie Stride,
Belford Dyalo, Thembisa Kortman, Ntombodidi Nonkwelo,Vusumzi Aixolo,
Sharon Sampson, Alan Stride, Luvo Ntantiso, Nosisi Njokweni, Moshweni
Magantolo, Phumzile Mbamba, Sandile Majali, Nosisi Zita, Lunga Mkosana,
Grinnet, Gcumeni, Maqabi Khutsana and Nkosana Klaas.
HIGH HOPES
FACE 2 FACE with
QWhat kind of work do
you do?
AI work as an
entomologist, a
biological scientist who
specialises in the study of
insects.
What do you enjoy about
your job?
I enjoy working with
students, grooming young
entomologists; making sure
they understand and
appreciate how diverse the
world of insects is and how
important they are to the
livelihood of human beings.
What is challenging about
what you do?
Getting communities to
understand that not all
insects are enemies.
Some insects you find in
your garden are actually
there as predators to the
harmful pests. Getting
people to understand how
detrimental the use of
chemicals to control insects
on crops is.
Imagine a worker bee
landing on a flower with
chemical traces, taking the
chemical back to the hive
and endangering the whole
bee colony.
What would our life be if
the bees became extinct?
What fuels your motivation?
It’s watching our students
develop into scientists. Most
of them are often scared to
even touch anything that
crawls in the beginning, but
as the year progresses, they
learn the art of curating
insects into beautiful
specimens that are
incorporated into the
national insect collection.
At the end of the year
they are able to identify most
of them to family level and
some even to species level.
Their gradual transformation
is beautiful to witness.
What advice would you give
to young people who aspire
to be entomologists?
The field is wide with so
many opportunities. Once
you get in, make sure you
don’t blend in, find your
niche and stand out.
Name three people you
would like to sit at a dinner
table with and why?
1. Julius Malema, his
fearlessness and how he
always goes straight to the
direction in which bullets are
being fired. 2. The late
professor Lungile Pepeta. It
would have been an honour
for me to drink from the well
of wisdom of such a
visionary. His vision for a
medical institution in PE has
become a great success; 3.
Priscilla Shirer, an author, a
preacher and a full-time
mom. I love how balanced
her life is, and how she
hasn’t allowed her ministry
to prevent her from being a
fully present mom.
What interesting topic has
your attention now?
Indigenous knowledge
systems. There is a serious
communication breakdown
YO U R VOICE opinions on the street
when it comes to passing
information between
generations. There is still a
lot of African knowledge that
has not been documented,
and I feel we don’t have
much time.
What do you do in your
spare time?
I read novels and memoirs
and my favourite memoir
that I feel every black child
should read before the age of
20 is “Holding my Breath”
by Ace Moloi. I also enjoy
podcasts.
What three items you
cannot do without?
My phone, my books and my
bible ... no particular order.
What development would
you like to see in your area?
Libraries in the villages. I
would like to see more black
children investing in the
reading culture.
What is your favourite
childhood memory?
My late grandmother’s love...
My mind still can’t
comprehend how one
person could love so many
of us with so much intensity
What do you think about…
LWA N D O
DONDASHE
Covid-19 cases are on the
rise, with 6,282 new
infections reported on
average each day. The Rep
intern, Chuma Joni, took to
the streets and asked
residents if they expected the
government to take the
country back to lockdown.
Lwando Dondashe from
Lady Frere
No, I don’t expect the
government to take us back
to the lockdown. There is no
way South Africa is going to
survive, even if we go back
to lockdown that will not
DUMISANI
Q H AY I S O
make people more
responsible.
ELROY
TIMMA
Dumisani Qhayiso from
Nomzamo
Due to economic
reasons, I think it will be
difficult for government to
take us back to lockdown
particularly level 5 of a
lockdown. Preferably it
would be better if
government would take us to
level 1 or 2. The problem we
have is that because of
Covid-19, the economy has
dropped and under
lockdown children cannot
/ Thabisa Honey Mdlangu-Ngxokela e n t o m o l o g i st
NOXOLO
KOTI
go to school and we cannot
go to work and we struggle
to feed our families.
Elroy Timma from Komani
Pa r k
No, I think we have got
enough vaccination already.
There are enough people
who have been vaccinated. I
don’t think the country will
survive if we go back to
l o ck d ow n .
Noxolo Koti from Ezibeleni
Yes, people are ignorant
when it comes to Covid-19.
My fear is that people at
THE SKY IS
THE LIMIT:
Student pilots
from Border
Aviation Club
and Flight
School who
were part of the
festivities at the
recent Tiger
Moth 90th
anniversary
celebrations.
From left,
Simone Mopp,
Hlashila
Komane,
Sinovuyo
Kostauli,
Michael
September and
Lindokuhle
Sixishe P i c t u re :
ZINTLE BOBELO
MINELIA
MOSS
home are not working and
some people work shorter
hours - you pay as you earn.
We need money so our lives
are not on hold.
Minelia Moss from
Whittlesea
Most definitely the
government is going to
implement lockdown
restrictions. I think people
are trying to spite the
government, they are tired of
being controlled. I think they
wo n ’t put us on lockdown
level 1 or level 2, maybe
average level 3.