SA Criminal's National Anthem..Cry Conspiracy

Have any of you noticed the new trend of crying conspiracy by criminals...This is a worrying trend because it indicates there is a thought process [that seems to be working in some cases] that thinks the law can be manipulated by creating doubt and confusion. If the public had faith in the legal system would this kind of thing happen? Read this story not because the criminals involved have cried conspiracy [like the Knysna DJ that raped and murdered 2 young girls and DNA proved he was the person who committed the crime...but its a conspiracy you see..right!] but because if they were caught they probably would cry conspiracy!

A friend of mine recently went to write her learners at the Auckland Park License Dept. She failed by 1 point so she duly went to the licensing officer and said …'Ahh come on it was just one point’... to which the guy said if you wanted to get that extra point you should have mentioned that before the test.

My friend 'interrogated' a little more on this ‘option’ only to find that the public servants there are… surprise…. surprise, completing the test for you before hand and bringing your paper back saying you forgot to complete your name etc…. Sorry to sound cynical but it is unrealistic to expect the public to have any faith in the government or their departments when there are constant reports of corruption and non delivery, so blatant.

You apparently have to pay the bribe up front to avoid all the anti corruption steps that have been put in place after the test. And the price of the sin… R350.00 per bribe and that is at a discount. Considering that your learners costs you around R110 odd rand [if you do it legally] I would say these guys are making a killing. ‘Great’ business that is slowly choking our country but hey who cares right?! I do, but I am one person with a blog..big deal.

What is scary is that in one sitting my friend saw 3 people 'that forgot to complete information' in other words…bribing rotten stinking corrupt bastards, which in my book makes them just as bad - it happens because it can. Sorry I am so mad I could spit.

What is happening to our country [so tired of that question] that this can happen so blatantly out in the open.. There is no fear of the law anymore as we are slowly becoming a lawless society. We need to fight against this…the problem is when some of our ‘leadership’ have a question mark hanging over their heads the message is clear…its a free for all….'see what you can get because nothing will happen to me approach'. The worst thing that can happen is maybe in 10 years time going to trial and then the case being dismissed because someone 'mislaid the file' or the public simply forgot about it.

I am sure these people have no fear of being caught [no matter how much evidence] the new national anthem for the criminals of this country is ‘its all a conspiracy or a public vendetta’ that ‘has no merit’ and is untrue 'provoked by the press' - of course. So hey create enough mud in the pond to ensure clarity is lost.

The implications of this….we have an entire generation that have illegally got onto the road but have the documents to say they are legal….its no wonder we cant control the death toll on our roads. Let me know what you think about this because I am furious. Cry...our beloved country...

Glass half full/empty...SA

I have been reading all the inspirational things that have been going around from the likes of iburst etc regarding our beautiful country. I agree with most of them but I noticed that I seem to cling to the words ‘we have been here before’. In reality though, I don’t think we have. At the risk of being labeled a pessimist [more like a realist] I think we have finally crossed over into another place as a country, a place not many of us know or understand. We have gone off track and need some drastic help to come back to a new version of normality.

Lets review our country ‘killers’ at the moment:

-Lack of credible Leadership
-Violent Crime
-Corruption / Greed
-Poverty
-Non-Delivery by Government
-HIV
-High Illiteracy & Low level of Education
-Infrastructure decay
-Uncontrolled entry of Foreigners

Now I would feel optimistic about being able to sort these out if we had some sort of future plan, a strong leader and a credible and effective government channel and legal system. Our people also need to start understanding that for every negative action there is a negative consequence [that is why laws are created].

It is sad for me to sit in discussions when youngsters are discussing the possibility of leaving the country because they don’t see a future. At this point how many people have actually left is pure speculation and no-one in government seems to think this is a big problem. So many families being split out of fear.

All this at a time when we need all hands on deck…I am beginning to feel like I have no voice and the constant state of lawless [a growing number of incidents now involving police] is wearing me down. Too many terrible stories…. its becoming difficult to remain confidently focused on how beautiful our country is....the lack of balance at the moment is awful.

So here’s the thing…I will continue to post my views on these topics as they are close to my heart and if my words contribute even 0.001% to the pressure required for change then its worth it.
We need to stand together sure...but first.....we need to be led.

Living in the NEW NEW SA

I admit I have been scarce...lackluster is the word I would use to describe my mood. I am ashamed to say that I have been caught up in the constant bad news that seems to have become South Africa [over the past few months] - it seems to be everywhere you turn.
I am not going to reiterate what you all already know, but have finally realized that my mood was not going to help things. So I am back, albeit in pause mode for a while, waiting to see if any leadership emerges for the institution we call government.

Revolutions can be started by a handful of people [we have a history of that in this country] but there is something in the South African psyche [not only white South Africans] that tends to jump instantly to running away [to another country]. This at a time when we all need to stay and make a difference – the crime is a large factor in those decisions and I understand that fear [especially as a mother]. With the latest highlight of infrastructure decay a few just do not see hope, but rather decline.

A new thing has entered my mind this year with the emergence of Zuma and his 100% Zulu boy T-Shirt. [Something like that from a ‘leader’ encourages polarization not tolerance]. The question for me arose…where does this leave the white South African voice? An example of this is a sudden defensiveness I have picked up with any comments lodged by whites regarding Governmental inefficiencies. Are we racist, and the same comments made by a black person are realist? I am a little over that view. The government is simply not delivering and they need to bring the country back on track in a hurry, to deliver on the very basic fundamentals of our constitution.

I had begun to allow myself [my own fault] to think that as a white South African I had begun to lose my voice… [shock horror I know]. Then, I remembered choice and democracy and *‘that South Africa belongs to all who live in it, united in our Diversity’.. I am African. I do not have or want a ‘get out of jail free card’ [in the form of a foreign passport]. This is my country, and I am white. We as a people talk of integration and tolerance and in the end we are all in this together. We ALL need to do what we can to fix the country and avoid the issues that face Kenya. The fundamental starting point however is to be heard as a united voice as the people of this country, all singing the same tune.
God forbid that I ever have to leave the land of my birth. I dread the day that I would have to consider that [which I would do if the risk for my family got to great].

So a prediction…this year and possibly the next 5 to follow will be a watershed for SA. People will come and go and we are in for a bumpy road, but we must do our best to work together and *‘Heal the divisions of the past and establish a society based on democratic values, social justice and fundamental human rights; Lay the foundations for a democratic and open society in which government is based on the will of the people and every citizen is equally protected by law; Improve the quality of life of all citizens and free the potential of each person; and build a united and democratic South Africa’.

PEACE to the PEOPLE!

*Quoted from the South African Constitution

Zero Tolerance my backside!!!

After listening to the oke from the Metro police on 702 going on about zero tolerance this morning [even applying to taxis] you would think the heavy handed approach would be 'general' festive season standard...RIGHT? WRONG! These images are from the same spot that the arrest incident happened .. these are from the morning of the court case 15 November 07!

Images not so good, 2 many and 2 big... but you get the drift..In Image 7 the Metro police stand an look on whilst this whole affair takes place under their noses... any arrests???NOT!

Thanks Paul for your post!

JHB Metro: "To serve, protect" and arrest

Hold onto your seats this is a long one...

A friend of mine was arrested yesterday, see the link for turning left in an area of the road where she should have used the slip road. She said she had indicated left up till the end of the road and no one let her in so she simply went forward and indicated to turn left once the traffic light had turned green and it was clear of no other vehicles. Once she had done so a Metro cop stopped her and told her she was under arrest! Yet surprise, surprise could not tell her what she was arrested for.

This is frightening for many reasons but mostly because, a more law-abiding citizen you would not find!

She was arrested at 6.50am [thrown into the back of the metro police 4 x 4] and was only released last night after 9pm…to appear in court at 8.30am this morning to be told at 11pm by the Prosecutor that all 17 charges have been thrown out!

Her experience is horrific to say the least. 17 People altogether were arrested and they were humiliated in every way possible from things like:
• Getting thrown into a cell with real criminals (not to mention puppy size rats).
• Police were totally disorganized, arguing with each other completing the documentation incorrectly etc.
• Doing things like full body searches, for what?
• Laughing at them and saying things like 'you people just think you can pay your fines and get away with it, we are going to teach you a lesson’??
• One cop even said 'you are lucky you are in a group as we would have tortured you if you were on your own'.
• They were not offered food and drink from 7am-9pm. Is that what we call dignified, humane, democratic treatment..?
Ironically, not once in the whole ordeal did anyone ask to see her ID/license? What bothered me the most about her story is the horrific power trips and revolting bully behaviour of the police and how we as civilians can be treated like hardened criminals and these so called ‘protectors’ get away with it.

Is this what we are going to accept as the norm in this country? I feel more afraid of the police now than ever before…

Some of these people are now laying a civil claim, but why should this kind of thing happen in a country that already has such limited policing resources? It almost feels like the police targeting regular people to make an example…? We are sitting ducks and the poor are in a worse situation I am sure. Some of these people are now so traumatized they have to seek physiological help. Sadly those that could not afford a lawyer had to stay longer... Why should people have to spend money fighting the country’s public servants for insignificant things, when it is really real crime and HIV/AIDS we should all be fighting together.

Surely police resources would be well spent actually catching people that are harming others? It is interesting though when you hear of how the police seem to try and cover their tracks when the journalists arrive and how they try and change the story making up what the charge is... like not wearing seatbelts which is a total lie.
To me, when I hear things like this it sounds like we are a lost and lawless society where civilians are not protected from their own police force.. is this sounding familiar to anyone?

It is really depressing and we need to stop this apparent God complex happening within the Metro police [they are clearly doing nothing to help their PR] they also need to remember that they are really servants of the country. I am also tired of hearing that this is an 'isolated incident', how many of those do you need before you have a state if emergency??
No person deserves the kind of treatment these people got, that could have been your wife [with your children], daughter, son, mother or father.

It’s so sad that these kinds of incidents give the country such a bad name. Good luck to us all for 2010 arrives…. Can you just imagine it? Lets hope we have our act together by then and the Metro police are actually protecting and not arresting civilians for ridiculous things. I agree that we need law on the roads but come on! Lets have some balanced policing 2!

[UPDATE: This morning 16/11/07 I heard 702 talking to one of the senior JHB Metro people about this 'incident'. As someone listening from the outside I agree with zero tolerance see my post its a looooong road BUT from the outside the 'operation' looks 'clean' and organised and it was far from that. I simply don't agree with the inhumane way these people were treated- only when experienced by someone you know do you realise the extent of the treatment. If you also checked out the reason that some of these people where arrested you would afraid.....like in this case - the cops themselves didn't know - wrong place, wrong time. There was no driving on a white/yellow line here! Excessive in my opinion and totally unacceptable. This round up and arrest strategy is not at all democratic and ruins peoples lives. I hope the Human Rights people do an investigation on this one and then 702 can bring that Metro okie back for another round.!]