Our duty is to the voiceless, the poor and marginalized.
The Citizens’ Cabinet is committed to consistently championing the voice of ordinary citizens, in particular the poor and marginalized who are often ignored by policy makers. Over the past few weeks we condemned the hike in ZUPCO fares and called for a reduction of the same to make them more affordable to the long suffering majority. Additionally, we called on the government to be more transparent with regards to the Covid-19 pandemic and the lockdown measures, including specifics on the variants circulating in the country and the effectiveness of our vaccine regimes against infection, serious sickness and death. We have also made calls for the government to state clear objectives when declaring lockdowns and to outline clear review timeframes and measures taken to prevent the abuse of lockdown measures by law enforcement agents. To this end, we therefore welcome the recently announced decision by the government to reduce ZUPCO fares and also note the improvement in information shared around the latest lockdown announcement, including the announcement that over 80% of positive cases are of the delta variant and that the target is to vaccinate 1 million people over the extended two weeks lockdown period. We will continue to monitor government policy announcements and implementation with a view to make sure that it’s accountable to the people’s interests. We particularly would like to urge the government to ensure that rural communities are not left behind in the accelerated vaccination drive.
Access to Affordable and Efficient Data and Mobile/Internet Connectivity
We note, with deep concern, challenges in both Wi-Fi and cellphone connectivity in the country in recent weeks. We challenge the government through the relevant ministry to urgently make a pronouncement on this and advise the nation on what exactly is going on. We can not accept a situation where matters of public concern such as this go unexplained. The unreliability of mobile phone and internet connection across the country has reached crisis levels. Furthermore, the cost of data and airtime in this country has become prohibitive and another basis to marginalize the poor and deepen inequality. This is particularly concerning given the shift to virtual platforms for work, schooling and social connection in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. The government must realize that in today’s world, efficient access to affordable data and means of mobile communication is not only a necessity but a fundamental right. We are particularly concerned about the mismatch between the recent increase in data tariffs against poor and unreliable service that is further compounded by frequent electricity black-outs in many residential areas.
Regional Developments
South African protests: Scenes from the streets of South Africa where distressing images of looting and general mayhem particularly in Gauteng, KZN and other parts of SA are most concerning to us. What is most disturbing is that in addition to the destruction of key infrastructure and private property, over 100 lives have so far been lost. At the heart of this is the fragility of society due to economic deprivation. This underscores what we have always stated, particularly the need for inclusive economic policies and a people-centered growth trajectory that leaves no one behind. This complete breakdown in the socio-economic fabric is, in our respectful view, a result of exclusionary socio-economic policies which deprioritize working class and marginalized communities, while concentrating wealth and opportunities in the hands of a few.
We reiterate our call for approaches that prioritize trust and confidence building among citizens as opposed to conventional securitized responses. The mayhem that is taking place in South Africa should be a wake up call to other countries in the region and beyond. As long as the reality of exclusionary economic policies, high unemployment (especially among the youth), acute poverty, lack of opportunities and hopelessness continues in any one of our countries, the explosions we are seeing in South Africa can happen anywhere. And as noted in our Bulletin No2/2021 when the state fails, especially on matters to do with safety and security, it creates space for vigilantes and when fragilities are along race and class fault-lines this creates a very dangerous situation.
Eswatini: We reiterate our call for the Government of Eswatini to engage the pro-democracy movement in trying to find a lasting solution to the many challenges bedeviling the country. The heavy-handedness characterizing the government’s securitized response will only serve to sharpen hostilities and further plunge the country into turmoil. We associate ourselves with the Eswatini pro-democracy movement’s demands for an inclusive political dispensation achievable through dialogue underwritten by SADC, the crafting of a new democratic constitution, unbanning of political parties, and last but not least, the inauguration of a Transitional Authority to run the affairs of the government in the interim.