You cannot build sensible policy on slush!
Once upon a time there was a poor Irish potato farmer named Paddy. He was a religious man who yearned for better financial times. Each night he ended his prayers with an impassioned plea: “Dear Lord, if it pleases you, allow me to win the Lottery!” Alas d
Tall buildings need strong foundations
If you spend some time thinking about modern-day South Africa you can probably summarise the country’s problems using just three words: crime, poverty and intolerance. We submit that you could solve all the country’s woes with even less effort. The one thing that South Africa needs beyond all else is education. It is the foundation that will solve any number of other social ills.
That’s why it’s so frustrating that government continues to drop the ball in this regard. For all their effort (sic) the South African education system remains a total shambles. Despite spending more on education than practically any other country in Africa we produce sub-standard results. But unlike the rest of Africa our sub-standard school leavers have hopelessly inflated expectations. The South African education system is strafe-bombing society with partly educated job seekers with no ability to think logically and without a modicum of accountability.
Policy is totally misdirected. Instead of getting the basics right to ensure that each child has a seat at a well-maintained school with access to a competent teaching staff and sensible content, our social engineers have been toying with Western concepts such as outcomes based education. It’s a great concept; but it only works if your foundations are spot on. And things get worse. ANC President Jacob Zuma’s recent populist statements on the matter put another problem on display. He told a rapturous crowd recently that at least 60% of schools should be none-fee schools. There are two problems with this plan. The first is that it’s pointless providing a ‘free’ second-rate education. Make sure that the system works before you offer it free of charge. And the second is that our school goers already have little respect for the education system. How do you think their behaviour will change when they’re not even paying to go to school?
Respect for the law comes from the top
We have half-baked plans like this in all sectors of our society. We’ll pick up on one of our favourites right now – law enforcement on our roads – particularly where drink driving is concerned. South Africa has fairly strict drink driving legislation at present. Should you be caught driving with a blood-alcohol level in excess of 0.05 gram per 100ml you can be arrested and charged for driving under the influence (DUI). The maximum fine is R120 000 or six-years in prison. Unfortunately nobody in South Africa seems to give a hoot. A recent survey suggested that 60% of the country’s drivers had driven while (in their view) they were outside this limit. Why are we so flippant about the law?
One reason is that the chances of being caught are so scant. The other is the example set by the country’s elite. They prove how easy it is to put the brakes on the wheels of justice and shirk accountability. Metro police chiefs, high court judges and other high profile sport and music stars frequently make the news for alleged DUI offences… They’re never seen to be punished – and never apologise for their actions! How will government address the rot?
Let’s re-cap! We already have a system where downing two beers will result in you exceeding the drink driving limit. We also know that people drink and drive because they believe they won’t get caught and won’t be punished if they are. So the answer is to focus on strict enforcement of the law. The only way to crack down is to take a tough stance on all offenders and make it clear that they will be caught and prosecuted. Instead our lawmakers want the blood-alcohol level reduced...
Editor’s thoughts:
To succeed in any task in life you have to get the basics right. Forget fancy plans for education and make sure that every child gets a good basic education as a platform for after school studies. And forget setting tighter limits for drink driving when the real problem is to get the basic enforcement function right. How would you go about fixing South Africa’s attitude to drink driving? Add your comments below, or send them to gareth@fanews.co.za
