The year 2020 has been unprecedented and filled with mortality and despair. Billions of people all over the world have either directly or indirectly been affected by COVID-19; with many showing remarkable resilience and compassion during this time. Most countries went into lockdown to try and control community transmission and allocate financial aid to support healthcare systems and the most vulnerable within their societies. Countries such as Singapore, South Korea, and New Zealand are amongst the countries with the best global responses to the pandemic and this was achieved by stellar leadership, nationwide support in the following of protocols, as well as, targeted directing of funding to support health care and those most at-risk.

South Africa has registered more than 600,000 COVID-19 cases thus far– making it the hardest hit country in Africa. This is extremely alarming as the public health sector is not nearly equipped or large enough to support most of its population. As a result, many South Africans will have contracted the virus and healed or faced death without receiving any medical attention due to its sheer inaccessibility. This is largely due to the ills of our past. However, the current government has made noticeable strides in trying to change this over the past 26 years.

Our ruling party has accomplished many successes in creating a freer, equal and just society for all its citizens, however, so much more could have been achieved had this scarred nation not faced a longer-term pandemic called, corruption. 

Corruption is a word so often heard when turning on our televisions and radios that as a nation we have experienced mass desensitization to this societal evil. We now almost expect an administration littered with self-serving officials stealing state resources to fund their private lifestyles whilst ordinary South Africans lack basic services – a period of immense loss through a global pandemic is no different. During this time we have witnessed the misuse of billions of relief funds by politicians and linked businesses involved in tender fraud deals of personal protective equipment (PPE) and other medical equipment. Among the many reported incidents, we have also witnessed the sale of food aid parcels intended for the poor, all whilst the country, is faced with reports of malnutrition, retrenchments, business closures, and communities being unable to access health care and other services.

As an editorial in the Daily Maverick so clearly stated “Stealing from your own people is a crime; stealing during the pandemic is a crime against humanity”. The idea of illegal self-enrichment and wealth hoarding on the backs of hardworking and struggling South Africans is an even more heart-breaking egregious act during these unprecedented times and should be treated as that by holding those committing these selfish acts accountable. Furthermore, since the advent of democracy, we as South Africans have loyally paid our gratitude to the political party that liberated us from the evils of Apartheid. We entrusted the elected government to put our people first in the midst of a global pandemic where COVID-19 has claimed the lives of nearly 1 million people worldwide. However, we’ve seen officials from media reports and current public hearings through the Zondo Commission, misuse billions of rands to fund their private lifestyles with little to no accountability.

It is no secret that we live in one of the most unequal societies in the world. This inequality gap has only widened as the wealthy have been able to weather the storm from their Wifi enabled homes while poorer manual laborers have struggled to survive from hand to mouth. Furthermore, as the country prepares to build back after the pandemic, it is important not to leave behind the most vulnerable. In a study conducted in 2017 and validated in 2019, women are the primary breadwinners in South Africa and at least two-thirds of the three million South Africans who were estimated to have lost their jobs in the informal sector are reported to be women. That same research, based on the National Income Dynamics Study – Coronavirus Rapid Mobile Survey conducted in 2020, showed that women in the informal economy, and particularly those in informal self-employment, recorded large cuts in working hours and earnings during the lockdown. Not only is this pandemic costing millions of vulnerable women and their families a loss of income but these same women have experienced an increase in gender-based violence against them. The misuse and theft of state funding meant to protect the most vulnerable in our society have not been used to financially support families with social grants, food packages or to enforce targeted safety and security.

We cannot look at corruption within governmental structures in isolation. We need to realize that as a South African society we have in many ways nurtured, coddled, and encouraged the culture of corruption that is so gravely prevalent within our country. For many ordinary citizens, the bribing of police officers and greasing the palms of public officials to turn events into our favor has become so normalized and has slowly become a part of our daily lives. With that being said, it is ALL our responsibility to self-correct and foster a culture of accountability within ourselves and each other. Additionally, aside from media coverage and public outcry, the ruling party needs to be held accountable for the lack of action taken against their corrupt own. This culture of corruption needs to be dismantled in our communities amongst everyday South Africans first before we expect to see a dramatic change at the top. And, if the highest structures within the government aren’t holding public officials accountable, Our responsibility as ordinary South Africans should be to hold those self-serving politicians and officials accountable at the ballot box!

Let us never forget, that the true measure of any great nation can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members. Let’s continue to choose to stay true to our essence of ubuntu and community and never lose sight of fighting for a truly equal South Africa for all.