Why it is that African countries have to go through the painful and expensive exercise of convincing the so-called first world that South Africa, in particular, is ready and capable of hosting the Fifa World Cup?
We toiled culturally to showcase our rainbow nation as not barbaric, and politically to prove a matured democracy and stability, not a state of lawlessness that reigns in the foreigner’s mind, economically so that they don’t think we are a bunch of loiters. Even religiously, to show various and varying fellowship tolerance.
Instead of defending and portraying the reality of the state of readiness, some even — the worst culprits — the local media, also went on a self-imposed exile in solidarity with foreign pessimists.
This does not imply that the media should completely ignore the incomplete England base in Rustenburg or potential transport problems as reported previously.
We are suddenly expected to host and manage the perceptions of foreigners instead of enjoying what ordinarily may come of the greatest football to be hosted in Africa for the first time.
Every time sceptics find satisfactory answers to their perceptions that the stadia will not be completed on time, they soldier on to find another excuse.
A week ahead of the 100-day countdown to kick-off, Rich Mkhondo, the chief communications officer and his team at the 2010 Local Organising Committee, as is norm, had to extend an invitation to 130 journalists from all over the world, from renowned television stations such as the BBC, CNN, Al-Jazeera, leading newspapers such as Reuters, The Guardian, The Observer and other world online and radio stations, to further assure the world, that we are ready.
This is the first time in the history of the World Cup, that there has been such an elevated beauty parade of the stadiums — just to check the facilities and state of readiness. What a good precedent South Africa has set should Fifa choose to standardise such stringent conditions.
Typically, the questions arose, the usual suspects asked about crime and our capabilities. In Germany, the Frankfurt stadium had a leaking roof during the 2005 Confederations Cup, but that went quietly unreported.
Former SAA CEO Khaya Ngqula was one of the many victims of crime in Germany during the last Fifa world cup. His hotel room was cleaned out by thugs. It was not a big deal.
Certain German skinheads declared certain zones no-go areas for blacks. Again, it was not a big deal.
The state of readiness was probably misjudged by the roads under construction leading to the stadiums, certain sceptics probably just noticed the organised chaos outside of the stadium by constructors, ranging from shacks and office spaces to unpaved routes.
At a press conference to mark the 100-day countdown celebrations at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban, Fifa President Sepp Blatter described the World Cup as a “love story” that was becoming a reality.
The “love story” metaphor follows Nelson Mandela’s remarks — when he held the trophy on May 15 2004 in Zurich — that “a dream had come true”.
Fifa General Secretary Jerome Valcke also reiterated his confidence in South Africa hosting a spectacular event saying it was “all systems go”.
“Many countries in Europe dream to have stadiums as good as this one (Moses Mabhida),” he said.
Notwithstanding this painful, yet somewhat necessary exercise that South Africa has to go through to prove to the world that Africa is not a jungle, credit must go to the South African Local Organising Committee, the people of Africa and the government of South Africa.
Today, a nation is united in celebrations. From aviation to security, from broadcasting to telecommunications, from Green Point Stadium in Cape Town to Peter Mokaba Stadium in Polokwane, from hospitality to transportation. It is all systems go, come kick-off.
To the doomsayers, the debate about the perceived negative aspects of colonialism has occurred for centuries, among both coloniser and colonised, and continues to the present day through your deeds.
It has perhaps become a habit in first world countries that nothing good will ever come out of Africa. It is perhaps time to shift the habit. It will take convincing way beyond Blatter and others.
Often, changing a habit does seem insurmountable. Many people simply do not have enough motivation to change their habits in a way that would truly affect their perceptions. They cling to those that reward them. Even poorly so.
Joe, good piece. There are a lot people in the world who want this event to fail. Locally and internationally. BUT there are also hundreds of thousands of people who want it to rock, really want it to be great.
And it will be great. Of course there will be some crime or some shit happen. But the football will be awesome. And in 5/10 years time no one will remember the bad shit, they will just remember that the world cup rocked. It was the same with the rugby world cup in 1995. A lot of people thought it would be a failure, that SA shouldn’t hold it so soon after the fall of the apartheid government, that there were divisions in the country, crime etc. But 15 years on and Clint Eastwood has turned Nelson Mandela and Francois Pienaar into Jehovah and his son, Jesus! The same will happen with the football, the bad stuff will be forgotten and the good shit will reign on. Maybe they will even make Invictus II with Steven Pienaar!
To some degree I see your point, but you also miss the point. Western Europe and other first world countries are now exposed to many African health (my field) professionals from many parts of the African continent in general they have little good to say about Africa its politics, its nepotism, its wabenzi culture. Add in a good sprinkling of pale saffers and yes – word of mouth – Africa is in general an incompetent, and crime riven environment, and its future looks bleak. The ongoing trickle of news stories tends to reinforce this image / perception.
Hmmm….
Interesting you use the word habit…defined as “A recurrent, often unconscious pattern of behaviour that is acquired through frequent repetition.”
The question that remains unanswered however is how those habits, or perceptions, were formed in the first place? Good governance, accountability, productivity, reliability???… please correct us as to where we have gone wrong in the creation of our perceptions?
Your points are perhaps partly justified. One could say our country is ready and safe for visitors. On the other hand, we mostly definitely DO have a crime problem – however the people it affects the worst are not tourists. It seems blatantly cruel to tell the world that ‘South Africa is perfectly safe’ when it isn’t.
A country like Germany would probably be in revolt if they had our murder rate.
Unfortunately Africa has a poor reputation for infrastucture internationally, and deservedly so. South Africa is unreasonably lumped in with the rest. The worst of it is that the SA media did not look for the positives of our achievements, but continually aired the perceived negatives. The SWC in SA will be the greatest yet. Lets all learn the SWC dance and show the rest of the world up for the hypocrites they are.
We in Canada feel sorry for South Africa for having to carry the burden and costs of the Fith World Soccer Cup, but we have set an example this year, and also treated the world during the Games with respect and bliss.
Enjoy your priviledges and smile.
It all comes around but once a life time.
CHIN UP
Let the people eat soccer. Now stop whining about service delivery, no water, no electricity, no toilets, bad education, no jobs. You have soccer stadiums.
The news is full of how white people are being intimidated and victimised by the South African police force.
No one except South Africans care about the pretty stadiums. Those attending care about the soccer, being safe, and what its going to cost them.
Perhaps the problem lies less with the evil foreign press.
Rather it might be the pictures of marauding taxi-drivers, burning barricades, murder statistics that fuel ‘mis-perceptions’.
These activities are as uniquely South African as is the blasted Vuvuzela so the perception of South Africa as being totally different is a creation of the righteous masses and as such is a creation of the struggling masses who are starving ordying of Aids.
Don’t blame the messenger.
If the perception exists, then Africa needs to change it, not other countries outside of Africa. Why do we as South Africans always put the blame on others? We must see this World Cup as an opportunity to shift the perceptions of other nations.
The lead up to Germany 2006 was also preceded with huge negative publicity especiality about un finished stadia and thugs that would disrupt everything, mainly from the English press. My German business associates hated so much being spent on “just a sport’ and vigerously opposed everything about the cup.
So it is “everything normal” for our cup, GROW UP accept that the world’s media focus on the negative and ignore senseless reporting but take note and fix what constructive reporting highlights.
We will have a great cup just focus on our friends and those getting things done and soon the soccer. You yourself stop focussing on the negative media there are far more media reporting positive things that deserve your attention.
Brent
I refer to Joe’s article on the cost of hosting the world cup. I held a seminar at the Congressional Black Caucus in Washington last year with the so called forward thinking African Americans. The words Africa and African conjure images of HIV, malnutrition, civil war, poverty- the monumental basket case! These perceptions are informed by the media they consume. While it is so tempting to blame everyone but ourselves for this state of affairs the allure of this single narative has finally worn thin with me. Why would anyone believe in Africa’s ability to host a magnanomous world cup if OUR own media is sreaming louder than ever that this world cup will fail? Why would anyone want to visit your house when you are constantly warning them about the inferior state of your architecture and illness of your social fabric.Why cant our media, for once, present a more balanced view of South Africa’s reality instead of harping on about the bad news? The world media is free to write as they please but they take their que from us. While I accept that the ANC governement can do much better in governing this country, I am nevertheless tempted to ask… At the risk of being labelled a racist (borrrrriiinggg!!), is the white controlled local media deliberately subbotaging South Africa as part of its relentless and sinister campaign to discredit the Black government? Lasting impression, Africans are incompetent and in need of constant supervision! oh plizzzz!
“[T]he reality of the state of readiness” is that many of the stadia are *not* ready, which is why construction is continuing. If they were ready, the construction crews wouldn’t be working there.
Which might explain why there’s concern.
Okay so what really are you saying. That the ANC should be congratulated on its show piece. I still say we can do without the world cup.
Used the money to build power stations, hospitals even prisons instead trying to show the world how great the Government of today.
Another point is that 90% of those who will not come is because of the huge cost.
I flew from Luton to Berlin for under a R1000.00 stayed at a two star hotel that cost R300.00 per night. An All Rail Transport cost R700.00 anywhere in Germany.
In SA just the transport costs to say three games is in exccess of a six hundred Euroes.
The Air ticket to get here is another Euro 1000.00 Then we add accomodation etc. That would be another 600 – 4000 Euros depending on the length of stay.
The game tickets would be in exccess of 100 euros for a resonable seat. Now contary to belief this is no small sum when totaled.
So maybe that generalised overall cost of Euro 2500.00 has more to do with it than admitted. For it is not the ordinary supporter that has that amount of money. The Footie supporter is the ordinary joe earning BP12.00 / hour.
They can afford to shoot over to Germany for the night of a game but not stay over longer. comming to SA they are commited to making it a worth while trip.
Its strange that the blog is titled “The cost of hosting the world cup” and yet not a word is said about the massive budget overruns that have pushed the financial cost to SA taxpayers to somewhere in excess of R50billion (from initial estimates around R8billion)
Where well used stadia like Absa Durban and Newlands Capetown were offered, LOC chose to build giant white elephants that, while magnificent, will leave a legacuy of debt for many decades to come in the host cities, who are all well behind in delivering basic service delivery of housing, health and education to the poor of South Africa.
As always in Africa, its the government bling and show off that counts for more than getting the basic services to the poor and general citizens
The best way to disprove these pessimists is to hold a well organised World Cup. Of course our stadiums are fantastic and much of the other important infrastructure will be in place. But of course we are all a little nervous that we have some incompetent person sitting somewhere crucial who has been issuing tenders to unfit tenderpreneurs who will let us down at a crucial moment…
The rest of the world will not be as forgiving as the SA public is when someone messes up massively due to incompetence. They will not be saying “ag shame he tried his best” or “she comes from a poor background so go easy on her…”.
Also, the service delivery protests in Gauteng and elsewhere could be a problem… if these continue during the World Cup, they will of course get loads of international media attention with the angle “world class stadiums but down the road the poor protest that they have no water…” Let’s hope the government is engaging these communities in a way that means they don’t protest during the WC…. although it is their right to do so.
In the end, our reputation relies on how me run the WC… No one will remember the current noise – the question is will we make Africa proud?
Wanjiru, the media, LOCAL and overseas highlights much much more of the positive than the negative. What happens is that people like you, bloggers and Govt focus on the negative reporting and thus blow it up even more. Just ignore biased messages and focus on the positive and the latter will blow the former away.
Brent
@Wanjiru: “…..is the white controlled local media deliberately sabotaging South Africa..”
Was one of these media groups not taken over by one of the black captains of industry? Did he then join the “sinister campaign” you are referring to?
Should we all go in denial about farm murders, potholes, violent protests and……..must I go on?
I rather see visitors coming well prepared and on guard than being robbed, killed and otherwise experiencing unpleasantness on the hand of our compatriots who consider themselves entitled to the riches in front of their eyes.
The author of this article never mention the cost of having a world cup in SA. SA is a country that has other pressing problems that this money could have been better spent on then the world cup. Many people don’t have access to housing, health care, education, no jobs, lack of money to invest in energy and cheap transportation for the poor. SA is trying to borrow money from the world bank to invest in Eskoms that needs a lot of investments. After the world cup, people will still be living in shacks, many no schools, health and others services.
Joe have you been to Africa outside South Africa? Not speaking about rushed trips from clean and efficient SAA airplanes through 4th world airports to 5 star European hotels and back again to RSA like our politicians do – but slow thoughtful impressionable travels over time through Uganda, Rwanda, DRC, Ethiopia, Nigeria, Tanzania, Mugabeland and other great democracies and exemplary orders evincing the values and social qualities you so glibly attribute to ‘Africa’?
Well, I and millions of others from countries that work without overt and admired nepotism, corruption disorder, squalor and institutionalized racialism have.
Wake up and see the realities – especially in your dreamland. A morally challenged President and megalomaniac government condoning and steamrollering every honorable and just social and democratic value in the interest of transformation while poverty in 2010 is greater than it ever was in history! Of course that has nothing to do with the ANC government!
You and millions of myopic constituents of the ethnicocentric enclaves of new South Africa perhaps cannot see and understand, – but the rest of the world is not as untraveled, naïve, credulous and undiscerning.
The generations of South Africans ahead of us will look beyond Apartheid and justifiably ask what did our forefathers who took over from that era do that was more admirable, honorable, loving and enduring
Soccer stadia do not a true democracy and just society represent with equality for all its citizens!
Now abroad
Billy, I think you will find that it was FIFA who ordered the LOC to build those new stadium, rejecting the ones offered.
Also, as Marthie Meyer Horn pointed out, these are FIFA games. RSA are just hosting them. This is where the real antipathy from the rest of the World really comes from. people want South Africa to host successful games, but nobody wants to come and help that crook Sepp Blatter and his gang to make billions off the backs of poor South Africans.
OK, maybe Blatter fits in with some of the corrupt egomaniac “VIP’s” feeding now at the trough. Think of the deaths over contracts for building a stadium for the 30 people who live in Nelspruit.
This is why people will not come (apart from the sheer cost as Hugh points out), they want this corrupt group out of FIFA. Unfortunately, it is all to the detriment of the RSA public who have to foot the bill in the end.
Shame on FIFA!
The cost is worth discussing, though. There was an article fairly recently in the NY Times about how countries virtually always lose money on events like the Olympics or World Cup. The 2004 Athens Olympics is believed to have contributed to Greece’s financial meltdown. The 1976 Montreal Olympics took 30 years to pay off; London 2012 is already over budget; and so forth. Just doesn’t seem like it’s worth it.
http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/01/opinion/01altekruse.html?scp=1&sq=cost%20of%20hosting%20olympics&st=cse
@ hds
The investment potential of hosting the world cup for a country like south africa outweighs the costs.
We are doing this for the same reason we still have inflation targeting. Trying to convince the world that we don’t share bedrooms with lions is the aim of the game. Excuse the pun.
@ David Smith et al: While we’re all rocking to the most expensive spectacle in Africa’s history, spare a thought for collateral victims of prestige events; the poor and homeless.
It is hoped that SA will not go to the reported excesses of Zimbabwe in demolishing whole neighbourhoods, that offend the eye of visiting dignitaries and tourists. However Durban has already begun to round up homeless street people, with the intention of dumping them far out of eyesight. Expect much more of this as the games approach.
I hope this does not cause you any indigestion as you skof KFC takeaways, washed down with the sponsors soda
Why do you respond to doubts of your readiness by always pointing to other countries and not yours?
When you`re asked about the escalating crime in your country you retort there`s crime all over the world or that this or that counbtry was given the bid despite the fact that there`s crime in that country!
The truth of the matter here its thbat inb other countries there are cops who are managed by police stations and are above the situation whereas in South Africa there are no cops except terrorists and thugs who are given carte blanche to defy thge Constitution and lay on defenceless citizens with no recourse whatsoever for their victims eccxept the legal route.
These people are worried that cops will be using that loophole to lay on them knowing very well that they won`t exhaust that costly process of complainiung and extend their visas waiting for the finalisation of their complaints.
Once you hear citizens shouting loudly that they don`t bother about reporting cases to cops due to lack of confidence then you have a very serious and damaging case in your hands!
Forget about Ngqula but let`s look right here backj home…The Pakistani players were accosted right in front of their own guards and their hotel guards and violently robbed during the Cricket World Cup and up-to-date no-one has been brought to justice for that particu;lar incident.
The Egyptian squad Hotel room safe was broken