I was thinking about the Presidential Inauguration coming up this weekend and really thinking hard about why the need to spend R75million on a glitzy event? Surely there are starving people all over South Africa who could benefit from this monetary input?
Of course they can benefit in a small way, but the reality is that when a President is elected there has got to be large spend in order to get the necessary dignatories to the venue, transport costs, catering, security, etc, etc.
Now if you are as narrom-minded as the twit who phoned into 5fm this morning (let’s call him Julius for arguments sake) and argued with Gareth Cliff on the necessity of the spend, I do indeed feel sorry for you. Think about what you say before you speak it. Gareth managed to have Julius whinging away with a mouth full of teeth. Gareth proceeded to ask the guy what he was doing to combat poverty, and Julius’ response was “I give money away when I see beggars”. You GO Julius! You do that! You eradicate poverty one R2 coin at a time! What about the massive party you will or did throw for your 21st, 30th or 40th? Could that few thousand rand not be better used to eradicate poverty in your neighbourhood. Come on Julius, get some perspective!
The Bob Factor
On another note, another caller (lets call him Nick) called in to 5fm this morning agreeing with Gareth (and my view for that matter) on the inauguration costs, but his question was why they allowed Robert Mugabe in as a guest? Is this not showing the world media and powers that we are supporting the Zim regime? Of course not! We need to realise that we are the only mediation/link between Zimbabwe and the rest of the world. We are pretty much the only ones who can resolve the issues in Zimbabwe. Does this mean we should take militant action on Zimbabwe, possibly, but how would that help anything? War never solved anything in the past, why should it now? By inviting Bob, we are keeping that communication link open, furthering our input into the country. It’s an extremely sensitive matter, and upsetting Bob at this point in time, by not inviting him to the inauguration, would be catostrophic for the Zimbabwean people.
When pigs fly?
This whole swine flu epidemic has left me stone cold. It’s the single most boring topic in the media at the moment. Is it really as serious as Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918? Ok, so it contains the same H1N1 viral strain, but surely with the technology we have today this can be stopped dead in it’s tracks. Or are you telling me that in almost 100 years of medical advances, we cannot contain this outbreak?
