Archive for March, 2010

Because I am one of the many people who are tired of all the ANC Youth League’s antics, I want to voice my support of the initiative, started by Sipho Hlongwane, called ‘Speak ZA’. ‘Speak ZA’ is a social media protest against the ANC Youth League’s tactics against the media and journalists of our country.

Speak ZA

Bloggers for a free press

Last week, shocking revelations concerning the activities of ANC Youth League Spokesperson Nyiko Floyd Shivambu came to the fore. According to a letter published in various news outlets, a complaint was laid by 19 political journalists with the secretary-general of the ANC, against Shivambu. This complaint letter detailed attempts by Shivambu to leak a dossier to certain journalists, purporting to expose the money-laundering practices of Dumisane Lubisi, a journalist at City Press. The letter also detailed the intimidation that followed when these journalists refused to publish these revelations.

We condemn in the strongest possible terms the reprisals against journalists by Shivambu. His actions constitute a blatant attack on media freedom and a grave infringement on constitutional rights. It is a disturbing step towards dictatorial rule in South Africa.

We call on the ANC and the ANC Youth League to distance themselves from the actions of Shivambu. The media have, time and again, been a vital democratic safeguard by exposing the actions of individuals who have abused their positions of power for personal and political gain.

The press have played a vital role in the liberation struggle, operating under difficult and often dangerous conditions to document some of the most crucial moments in the struggle against apartheid. It is therefore distressing to note that certain people within the ruling party are willing to maliciously target journalists by invading their privacy and threatening their colleagues in a bid to silence them in their legitimate work.

We also note the breathtaking hubris displayed by Shivambu and ANC Youth League President Julius Malema in their response to the letter of complaint. Shivambu and Malema clearly have no respect for the media and the rights afforded to the media by the Constitution of South Africa. Such a response serves only to reinforce the position that the motive for leaking the so-called dossier was not a legitimate concern, but an insolent effort to intimidate and bully a journalist who had exposed embarrassing information about the youth league president.

We urge the ANC as a whole to reaffirm its commitment to media freedom and other constitutional rights we enjoy as a country.

Check out all the details here and lend your support

I had to share this – you have gotta love Kulula!

So this was the initial ad that they published:

It’s cute, right? But nothing really great. Well that is until they got into trouble with FIFA for using the term “South Africa”, a stadium, soccer and our national flag. This was their response:

OMG! It’s brilliant really. All FIFA did was create more publicity for the campaign! I love it when stupidity comes back and bites people in the ass!

I don’t know about everyone else but I have just had enough of the utter lawlessness and inconsideration that clouds this country!

I just got home after spending 2 hours in traffic (Yes – in the middle of the afternoon, for no reason other than because SANRAL felt like taking away 3 lanes of the 4 lane highway – they weren’t even doing anything!!) and during this time, all I could think about was how ‘we’ (the people of this country) just let it happen. We let the powers that be (whether it’s the government, big corporations, or the arrogant, self centered idiots all around us) have the control!

You know, in any other country, the people would be up in arms if they had to spend any amount of time stuck in traffic for roadworks. In any other country, if they take away more than one lane at a time the people are up in arms! The typical defensive question here would be: “But how would it get done then?” Well…. how about planning ahead? Or is that  too much of a foreign concept for people to understand? It is supposed to take long to change a highway infrastructure!!! We’ve had approx. 8 years (I stand to be corrected) to get ready for the FIFA World Cup – yet they only started with the highways a year ago.

If you can remember, it actually started off pretty well. I even used to commend SANRAL for the great work they were doing. They seemed to never take away more than one lane and they never worked in peak time. Now, as the clock ticks down to the World Cup, they don’t seem to care.

Now, I know this may seem like a small problem in a big pool (or should I say ocean) of problems in this country, but that is the biggest problem. We (as the people) except all of these ‘small’ things because there is always some ‘bigger’ problem. We say, “What’s some traffic when our Youth Leader is visiting criminals in jail, or when people are dying everyday because our health care system is pathetic?!” But the thing is – we should not except any of it! We should all be up in arms! And when I say up in arms, I do NOT mean, toy-toying, throwing rocks at people, burning things down or causing HAVOC!!! What I do mean, is that we should all band together (and when I say all, I mean all! I don’t care what your social standing or race is!) and say ENOUGH! We should have groups, organizations, that stand up for us. Organizations that are not run by, or in cahoots with, the government.

Take this Eskom fiasco as an example. If we want to be heard we should organize a strike – a ‘stay-away’ if you will. What would Eskom do if we all just didn’t use electricity for 3/4 days? Or if we all just didn’t pay our bill? How much money would they loose? Wouldn’t they then be forced to listen to us?

Yes, It’ll be inconvenient and even unpleasant but it will get our point across. I think it’s time that the people take the power back. I think it’s time that we remind all the ‘powers that be’ that the only reason they are where they are is because of us. The only reason Eskom can pay their CEO’s millions, is because we pay for electricity. The only reason Jacob Zuma is in power is because we voted for him. The only reason these road works are happening is because we pay taxes. I am so tired of these ‘powerful’ people or corporations thinking that they can get away with anything!

And you know what the worst part is – if we don’t do something soon, we are going to end up just like Zim. And it’ll be our fault, because we let it happen. Because , instead of us all standing up for what is right, we are all just saying “well if they can do it, I can do it too!” And if we are all corrupt and doing illegal things (yes, this includes the simple things like driving in the yellow lane) then where does that leave us? How would you come back from that?

This is not a free for all!!!

So I think I am going through an ‘Owl City’ phase, but this song is awesome! (And no, it’s not just because of the name! LOL )

Listen and let me know what you think….

Okay, so quitting smoking wasn’t really successful, I will stop avoiding the truth… I f-f-failed!

Shew *wipes forehead*, I’m glad I got that off my chest.

Anyway, I just wanted to share my song (yes, it is now officially dubbed as Weeball’s song because I LOVE it!). I like sharing what makes me happy – It speaks to my inner child – ENJOY