If you’re waiting for this government to make life easier for you in the new year, you’re in big trouble. It is up to us all to make South Africa work and that begins with every household in this country taking charge of its own destiny and then spreading the love, writes Gasant Abarder in a new #SliceofGasant column:
Tonight, we will gather with family and friends to usher in 2025. Upon reflection, on a personal level, the last year has been good. So, have fun tonight and keep it safe. But tomorrow there is no time to waste; we need to make our own luck.
The word waste comes to mind when I think of our cobbled-together Government of National Unity (GNU). All I’ve seen by this compromise of a government that is held together only less precariously than our power grid that is seemingly stuck with Pritt are empty promises, hot air and posturing.
I don’t see a plan or a blueprint for navigating ordinary South Africans out of troubled waters. What is clear is that the GNU fires blanks and we need to find our own rubber duck to ensure 2025 holds more promise.
Governments are meant to provide the ingredients for us to bake the cake, not give us cake and this GNU is a few items short on the batter. They’re just not getting the basics right. I only have room for one dysfunctional relationship in my life and supporting my beleaguered Manchester United is taking care of that. I can’t trust and invest in a GNU that fails to lay a foundation for its citizens to thrive.
It’s time to become entrepreneurial. We know that come tomorrow, all those grudge debit orders are going to start rising in cost: insurance, medical aid, rates and the like. If you’re not already thinking about multiple income streams, you had better start.
When I was in high school, I couldn’t understand how my best friend was selling ice cream at sports events. When I asked, he would just give me a wink and a knowing smile. Thirty years later, he is a mogul and runs mega operations at major events selling all the concessions. And he hasn’t forgotten his roots with his labour force drawn from where he grew up in Manenberg – ensuring an income for those who need it most.
Last week, I was further inspired when I happened upon an ad on a community chat advertising mobile car valets at a bargain. I gave this young man from Heideveld a try and he delivered a much-needed clean for my car and made it sparkle in my driveway. He was so professional that I had no qualms recommending him to the rest of the chat.
(Do yourself a favour and give Moosa of Regalia Mobile Car Washing a call on 082 692 6719.)
But perhaps the story of paying it forward that inspires me most is the annual Christmas tradition of my good friend Magadien Wentzel. This year, Magadien – a former prison gang leader, featured in the book ‘The Number’, and who has been crime-free for two decades – held the 20th anniversary of his Christmas party for the kids in Manenberg.
This year, there weren’t just the party packs but actual gift-wrapped toys that people who recognised his efforts donated. Magadien regularly collects used and sometimes new football boots outside of the festive season to provide for talented players from the community who need them most.
All three of these gentlemen have no formal qualifications but they are the CEOs of their own destinies and are not waiting for a government handout. That is what we should all be doing. Talent abounds in South Africa and if we can get past the red tape, we can all make 2025 a little bit more comfortable for ourselves and our families.
For example, there are families who work seven days a week and the normal job gives way for weekends, when everyone gets involved with a food truck business. What history has shown us is that we’re a resilient people who have weathered crazier storms.
Unfortunately, it must be said that we still live in the most unequal nation in the world. The haves – and this includes the members of the toothless GNU – have it all. The have nots live in squalor. The racial patterns of poverty have not been successfully reversed for the majority of black people. The inequality is now under the guise of class in our capitalist democracy, but it just so happens that the lowest income class is black.
Forget about the GNU and start making your own luck. Sell weekly lunches at work or start by selling off unwanted goods to pay off small debts and thereby creating more disposable income.
The new year is waiting for us to kick it in its eiers. Let’s grab it by both ears and make it the best year yet.
Happy New Year to all!
Also read:
You need to leave Cape Town to realise there’s no place like home
Picture: Supplied
