Why?

What is your opinion on the state of our Nation? It is time WE start talking about and creating the country that we live in and love. Let's start discussing our country from our point of view, the people who live here


Wednesday, April 25, 2012

Has the ANC just expelled their most principled leader?

The word ‘principled’ and politician do not often go hand in hand. More often than not they flip-flop from one ideology and stand point to another as it suites the political landscape and their personal ambitions. We see this time and time again from ANC politicians but not Julius Malema. Malema felt that the ANC under Thabo Mbeki was dishonouring the poor and the regular card-carrying members of the ANC and he was open about it. At one stage he went so far as to call Mbeki (the then President of the country and the ANC) a cockroach. He was praised by many in the ANC for standing up for democracy and for the poor. Turn the clock forward to 2012 and you see the same Malema; standing up for what he believes are failings in the ANC and saying that under Zuma the ANC has become a dictatorship. Many in the ANC were happy to let Malema rant when it suited them, however, now that he has turned on them, his behaviour is unacceptable. I believe that his behaviour has always been unacceptable but he has not changed his view on the political landscape in the country. Malema stands by his statement that the disciplinary charges against him are politically motivated and I would have to agree. His principles have not changed but under Mbeki he was praised, under Zuma he is expelled. While most of the leaders in the ANC base their decision making on political expedience, Julius Malema bases his decisions on the principles he believes in. This would lead me to believe that the ANC have just expelled their most principled politician. What do you think?
Posted by at

1 comment:

  1. AnonymousApril 26, 2012 at 3:07 PM

    You raise a good question. I have a couple of thoughts:

    1. It's all well and good to be principled but the real problem is what the principles are. Some of the worst men in history had very strong principles. I could mention a few but don't want it to seem like I'm tarring Julius with the same brush. That would be unfair.

    2. With that said, I can't say that an agenda that seeks the interests of the poor, for example, is a bad one. Maybe Malema is just a bad politician. Perhaps if he had found a way to maintain those good principles while "playing the game" a little better, he may actually have furthered the cause of the poor.

    I think of something that comes up sometimes when I fight with my wife. "It's not what you said, it's the way you said it." Julius has stuff to say and that's fine, but someone should help him to say it in a way that is appropriate.

    ReplyDelete

Subscribe to: Post Comments (Atom)