Cyril Ramaphosa: “8pm tonight I’m fucking up Christmas.”
A myriad memes flooded timelines in the build-up to President Cyril Ramaphosa’s family meeting with the nation at 8pm on Monday.
In anticipation, there was a rush on bottle stores. Interprovincial travellers were on tenterhooks in case their end-of-year family plans were scuppered. I bet travellers were checking the small print of their holiday bookings and insurance policies.
In our household, we wondered if our Christmas family lunch plans may be altered. Already, we had planned to eat outside – no matter the exposure to the Cape southeaster, the sun’s harsh UV rays or the rain. The turkey was to be cooked on the Weber under the milkwood trees. Our numbers were limited to 13 and all Covid-19 protocols would be observed. Short of designing an elaborate hug glove, the only physical contact allowed would be the elbow bump. In terms of special requests, my 83-year-old, very robust, but Covid-19-fearfully sensible f
First published by Daily Maverick 168
In military terms, MK was arguably a failure. But large numbers of courageous young people fled apartheid to join “the people’s army” and it was a very important symbol of resistance for the millions who remained at home. As we all know, MK was sheltered in the Front Line States, and many members of MK married into local communities.
It is desperately sad that the name of an army of resistance, an army sheltered in other African states, an army that was allied to progressive deals is now being used to legitimate a collapse into authoritarianism, public thuggery and despicable forms of chauvinism. It is just as sad that the name of an army that once stood for freedom is now being used to support Jacob Zuma, a notorious kleptocrat who wreaked havoc on our country, setting its progress back by decades.
First published by Daily Maverick 168
This time last year we were pregnant with expectations of what the new year, 2020, would bring. Some even colloquially christened it “Twenty Plenty” – anticipating a year of good fortune and prosperity. That is not unusual as the promise of a better tomorrow is perhaps the main reason we wake up every morning to tackle the day ahead.
To live in hope is to be human.
But by that time the first few cases of Covid-19 had been detected in Wuhan city, Hubei province. As more cases were reported in that part of China, the rest of the world watched from a distance. Normal life continued for the rest of the world. It was China’s problem, not ours.