The line separating Eldos from Kliptown and Soweto is as inconsistent as its electrical supply and water connections. But there’s a definite boundary when it comes to the politics. Old Eldos is a Democratic Alliance ward. And it’s not insignificant. Our parents were afraid of the bladdy blacks taking over in 1994. They felt they were better off with the devil they knew. And now, people of my generation are just bladdy racist. And they vote accordingly.
Like every other person of colour in Eldos, I’ve had to suffer the tik-fueled delusions of friends and family who believe black people are the enemy. And I’ve had enough.
This should be obvious to all decent human beings, but let me spell it out. Black people are not your enemy. The real enemy is ageing infrastructure, joblessness and a growing population with scant prospect of upward mobility. The real enemy is that sentiment within us that still clings to this feeling of superiority over black people. The real enemy is these deeply lodged sentiments that dictate how we choose our elected officials. It is destroying us.
Just because that outie looks kwaai doesn’t mean his pretty green eyes must get my vote. And you know I’m talking about food hampers here, neh? Don’t fall for silly prizes when it’s the final lap for these politicians. The politician who uses hampers is like that uncle giving free sweets out of his panel van at schools.
Why do you assume because you know the bra and his mother, and he is the same colour, that he is trustworthy? We really must give our candidates a harder time before they can run for us. Who are they? What have they done? Who do they associate with? We need people of integrity in our leaders and it starts with us. If he has ever taken a dodgy deal or broke the law, he isn’t for us! We already have that as a president, and see how kwaai that’s working for us!
If you’re saying Eldos is going to the dogs, then buy a leash. Start contributing to a better Eldos. We mos like nice things, why don’t we have that pride for our streets?
In closing, my people, kanallah, don’t vote with apartheid-style gedagtes! Vote instead for those people who actually make changes and who thrive on action, not excuses and lay blame. For too long have we allowed the ideologies of Apartheid to determine who we are, and how we see the others living among us. It’s time we take Eldos back. Until we make the difference within ourselves, fokkol is going to change.
