By Jonathan Jansen - courtesy of Times Live
Sipho: "As an old buddy from the struggle, I have to confess to a major decision that I have made with respect to the upcoming elections. Now that COPE has shot itself in both feet as a legitimate black alternative, I have decided to vote for the DA."
I also want a party that is anti-racist
Sipho: "Eish, slow down, comrade. I listened to Helen's speech in Soweto the other day, where they launched their Election Manifesto. And while it was too cerebral for the poor - people want to hear calls for machine guns, songs that sound like 'kill the boer' and how an ANC vote gets you through the pearly gates - you simply could not argue with the facts: the DA is much more efficient than the ANC in delivering to the people on the ground. It's not just Cape Town but wherever the DA controls a municipality, like the one in the Eastern Cape, they make a difference in the lives of human beings."
Nosipho: "Okay, maybe you've got a point there, but I want a party that is not only concerned about those liberal values like a strong constitution, free enterprise and clean government. I also want a party that is anti-racist, and that speaks out against racial atrocities in the country on a regular basis. That you don't get from the DA - all they harp on about is corruption, corruption, corruption. What about poverty? All they do in Parliament is to find fault. Did you ever once hear the DA praise the ANC-led government for what it is doing? No. Like those old madams of Rondebosch and Parktown, they still teach their domestics to live by two rules only. Rule No 1, madam is always right. Rule No 2, if madam is wrong, see Rule No 1."
Sipho: "Com, I don't think you're being fair to constantly portray the DA as a white party of madams and bosses. Look at those beautiful pictures along the country's lampposts. Three women - one white, one coloured, one African. Has the ANC ever had this picture of gender equity in its top ranks? You know as well as I do that Trevor Manuel will never become President, but people like Jimmy Manyi will score every time."
Nosipho: "You seem to have a short memory, broer. The people who suffered most in this country were Africans. That is why the movement is clear that the struggle was about 'Africans in particular'. Did Zille ever carry a dompas, or Patricia, for that matter? So it is our time to eat, and it is far too early to see a white woman running this country after they ran South Africa for centuries. No, dammit, don't you have any self-respect as a black man?"
Sipho: "I understand where you're coming from. In fact, you sound like this columnist who wrote a very honest confession in one of the Sunday papers. He made the point that whites in the DA still look like the people who oppressed him, and that he cannot do otherwise than "to vote with his scars." But what does that mean? That a black government can treat its people with contempt - as in Zimbabwe or the Ivory Coast - and still be guaranteed support for its leaders simply because of their struggle credentials? Is this not racist to in fact argue that black people cannot think beyond their skin, and that we make decisions only on the basis of our emotions?"
Nosipho: "No, no, I am not saying that. What I am saying is that your experience informs your decisions. You are asking me to wipe out memory and to buy into this reconciliation nonsense when I still see that the majority of the poor are black, that whites have given up very little since 1994."
Sipho: "True, but whose fault is that? It is your party that dominates the government, and that did little to change the situation for the poor. You have not convinced me. I am off to vote for the DA. But first I need to find Shilowa and Lekota to give them a hard kick up their bloody backsides."
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