Nearly three decades into democracy, the revolution has failed and SA faces an urgent task of resetting its fate, future, and vision, suggested retired judge and former deputy chief justice Dikgang Moseneke at a Sanef gala dinner.
“We paid continuous lip service to the kind of state and governance we deserved and did little or nothing about it. Look at us now,” reflected retired judge and former deputy chief justuce Dikgang Moseneke.
He further argued that at the inception of democracy, public representatives would adopt measures that would alter the social and economic lot of each if not most citizens, but this has seemingly not been the case. “We all knew that we could not change the trajectory of inequality and poverty without a competent developmental state. We paid continuous lip service to the kind of state and governance we deserved and did little or nothing about it. Look at us now,” said Moseneke.The retired judge maintained that while little progress had been made, the country ought to reset in many ways, including making changes to the Electoral Amendment Bill.
“Every other municipality faces severe inability to perform its most basic statutory obligations,” he said. “It cannot be that post State Capture revelations of misgovernance and accountability abound. Our circumstances of governance appear truly dire.”The retired judge lauded the critical role played by journalists and the media, while maintaining a long road lay ahead.