Young black South Africans simply face greater hurdles to success,”- Mmusi Maimane

The events of the week has everybody asking “Where is the leadership?” the sad answer is “What leadership?”

See, reality is, we haven’t had any true leadership in a while! When Nkandla happened “where was the Leadership?” When Marikana happened “where was the leadership?” When black executives were diminishing, where was the leadership? All leadership ever did, was bring armed forces! All leadership did was try and fool us! Leadership can’t be trusted, so please stop seeking them out! They will say nothing after-all!

I have been preaching for ages now, re the need for each generation to pick a struggle, picking a cause, that they are passionate about and fighting for it! And they have!#WitsFeesMustFall #RhodesmustFall #Openstellenbosch and then organising themselves to bilaterally form #FeesMustFall! I am more than proud of these kids! I am inspired! And I want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for fighting these battles! You are making it easier for our kids, so that when they come to school, they can focus on the job of learning! Not deal with structural racism and worry about fees, pronouncing words right and all those things put into place to make them feel inferior!The government should have seen these coming *If a lay person like myself could, they should have!* Due to the fact that South Africa has one of the most unequal societies in the world! South Africa’s Gini coefficient ranges from about 0.660 to 0.696. *The Gini coefficient is the measure of income inequality, ranging from 0 to 1. 0 is a perfectly equal society and a value of 1 represents a perfectly unequal society*. Yeah, we know that these measures can be unreliable, but it doesn’t need a statician or economist to say or see this. We black people are living it daily! And we know what we are talking about, we are either affected or impacted! Apparently in 1994, Brazil’s Gini index was similar to South Africa’s but has since improved, inequality in Brazil has fallen! There’s been a rapid rise in secondary school enrolment and graduation rates (without sacrificing quality). Instead we are going back, stunted by corruption and our kids are asked to be thankful that atleast, they can go to the same varsities as their white counterparts!

The way I am so angry, I can’t even put my thoughts down for proper articulation! We, as black people are asked by our “voted” *I use voted very loosely* government on a daily to be thankful for the little crumbs that they have given us and continue to give us! Yepee! I’m so fucke* grateful of the prospect that I might be unable to afford my child’s university fees and I am a so called “success story”! *I have a hard earned degree and went to a previously Model C school* Hey, I am so fuc*en grateful that her friend, whose mother is a helper at some white rich neighbourhood *Where the kids get bought X5’s* might be unable to afford tertiary education! Don’t ask us to be thankful for bullshit, while we see you balling*Nkandla, Travelgate, PetroSA, Prasa, Eskom* at our expense, at our neighbours’ expense! The problems in our country are multidimensional *I know that*, these students come from being taught under trees, to being expected to speak English fluently and understand the lessons quickly, to being exposed to computers and internet at campus for the first time *and they are still able to pass and kick ass even* and then students face exorbitant fees and when completed they can’t get jobs! *the fuckery!*

Unemployment has been unmovable at 25%, the story that it’s “easier for black people to get a job” is a myth! *Having lived with an unemployed Rhodes graduate, can’t tell me shit about AA benefits, when I say government is not doing enough! I know what I am talking about* “unemployment among black South Africans stands at 39%, compared to 8.3% among whites and Possibly of most concern, is the increase in the unemployment rate for black Africans with tertiary education. It more than doubled, from 8% to 19%,” Stats SA said. We can’t expect people coming from an unequal footing to suddenly fit in, without real changes! Reality is, these schools were not built for us and government just let them be, because the people in power are proud to brag that their kids go to these elite schools! The tactic is, increase the fees so high that the average black child can’t afford it!When people were campaigning for free education for all, they thought it was a joke! Wits, UCT and all these other universities is showing that it’s a need and more than that it’s a requirement! Our people need it, instead of dumbing down the education system, this was what should have been the focus, how do we make this a reality? Instead they were focused on curriculum 2000, OBE and now CAPS!

Youth of 2015, VIVA! ALUTA A CONTINUA! Youth of 2015, you are a force! You are the leadership! You are not just about turn ups and materialism as you have been painted! And you are definitely not born frees, as has been preached! You, the youth of 2015! Born in a confusing time, seeing privilege but being on the fringes! Seeing opportunities but not being able to access them and when you can’t, being told it’s your fault! This system must fall! And this system shall fall! #FEESMUSTFALL so, when they ask again, “where is the leadership?” tell them “WE ARE HERE!”
Article By Nthabiseng Lucia Tselapedi