There exists a disturbing phenomenon in our country where no one person appears to be eager to assume responsibility for their individual deeds. The culture of blame shifting and victimhood is so deeply entrenched in the fibre of society that none of us appear willing to account for our individual actions, nor do we muster the courage to hold accountable those entrusted with positions of power. Government has mastered the art of blame-shifting; and it has become a commonly accepted norm to blame apartheid for apparent failures to discharge individual duties.
Recently, the new Jacob Zuma administration has made it their habit to blame the previous Thabo Mbeki administration for every problem under the sun. The question that arises is “when do those in power now begin to accept collective responsibility for all these problems facing the country, from corruption, violent crime, lack of service delivery, HIV/Aids pandemic, etc?”
The ANC has been in government since 1994; and if we are to proceed on the basis of the tradition entrenched within the ANC that decisions of the highest decision making body, the national executive committee, is binding on all its members, then all the resulting adverse consequences of such decisions should be put before those in the leadership at any particular point in time. The ANC prides itself with “collectivism” but that seemingly only applies to successes rather than failures. This was clearly demonstrated during the election campaign when the successes of the last 15 years were trumped up and owned by the Jacob Zuma and his band of cheerleaders; while the failures were all Mbeki’s fault.
Zuma along with a number of his Cabinet ministers have served in government in some capacity or another since 1994 and it is therefore puzzling that none of them want to take responsibility for failures of the Mandela and Mbeki administrations. The issue that everyone in government today appears to want to wash their filthy hands from is the manner in which the previous government is alleged to have approached the HIV/Aids issue.
The word “denialism” is bandied about by all and sundry as though the previous government had a particular policy of denying the orthodox view on HIV/Aids, when in fact government’s HIV/Aids policy was premised on that particular orthodox view that HIV causes Aids.
In 2006, the then deputy president, Ms Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, at Cosatu’s 9th National Congress said: “Since there is no cure for Aids we must act together to stop new infection by the HIV which causes Aids. We need to understand and tackle the factors that are helping make the impact of HIV and Aids so severe in Southern Africa. Socioeconomic factors; unequal gender relations that put women at risk; unprotected and unsafe sex; life style and stigma these and others play a part in the extent and severity of HIV infection across our society and region and the progression of its impact … comprehensive behaviour-change programmes that recognise and respond to the structural, social and individual drivers of HIV infection must therefore be the cornerstone of our prevention efforts.”
This view that was advanced by the then Deputy President Mlambo-Ngcuka was consistent with the view of the World Health Organisation (WHO) that extreme poverty was the world’s biggest killer. In its 1995 report, WHO said, “poverty is the underlying cause of reduced life expectancy, handicap, disability, starvation, mental illness, stress, suicide, family disintegration and substance abuse”. I am yet to hear WHO being accused of denialism. Perhaps that is yet to come.
In an interview with Time Magazine in 2000, Mbeki further stated that, “the notion that immune deficiency is only acquired from a single virus cannot be sustained … you cannot attribute immune deficiency solely and exclusively to a virus.”
It boggles the mind how seemingly intelligent commentators and journalists would have deduced from these comments that Mbeki was denying the link between HIV and Aids.
What I find more remarkable is that Zuma who served as head of the National Aids Council during the Mbeki administration and who was responsible for HIV/Aids policy, wants to exonerate himself to what many claim to have been genocidal in dealing with the HIV/Aids pandemic. The question we must ask Zuma when speaking on elevated podiums is, “what did you do then as deputy president and head of the National Aids Council when the former president allegedly promoted “denialism”? If Mbeki is indeed guilty of genocide (which is utter rubbish) as alleged by the brainless Young Communist League, then his entire Cabinet at the time is equally guilty of being accessory to genocide, including the current state president.
Nelson Mandela too cannot be exonerated from taking responsibility if we are to blame Mbeki for this pandemic and resultant deaths. It appears there is a deliberate attempt to shield this national icon from any warranted criticism; and rather perpetuate his saintly stature and deflect all blame to Mbeki. It was in October 1998 when Mbeki then deputy president and the then minister of health, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, put a stop to the health department’s piloting of antiretroviral treatment for the prevention of mother-to-child transmission, for a good reason. The person who was in charge of government at the time was Nelson Mandela. It is perplexing that the nonsensical study by the Harvard School of Public Health which claims Mbeki is responsible for over 300 000 does not mention Mandela once as the person who was ultimately accountable for actions of government in responding to HIV/Aids.
Mandela was president of the country and ultimately accountable for decisions of government; including that decision taken in 1998 to ignore the White Paper by Eskom on electricity, which recommended that power stations be built — given the projected limited capacity. When we reflect of the problems of that the country face today, it would be important to acknowledge that these problems were not born in 1999 when Mbeki ascended to the presidency.
To resort to populist grand posturings when addressing the problem of HIV/Aids is not going to be helpful. What is consistently missing from the discourse surrounding this pandemic is the question of individual responsibility. It does not suggest that government has no constitutional mandate to provide healthcare; but we cannot absolve individuals from their duty of care when engaging in pleasures of the flesh. In previous years government had engaged in a massive campaign to educate people about HIV/Aids.
I would personally find it difficult to believe there exists any individual out there who does not know what the preventative measures are against HIV/Aids infections. The promotion of abstinence and safe-sex has always been at the centre of government’s approach to dealing with this syndrome. No government official can be expected to be standing at every dark corner with condom in hand to assist adults to avoid contracting HIV. At what point to do we stop blaming government and start to put blame squarely on the shoulders of HIV patients?
This problem emerged again when the nation rose against the Reitz Four for allegedly humiliating workers at the University of the Free State. That actions of these four young boys were abhorrent cannot be contested; BUT the question that everyone appears to have forgotten to ask was “Why did these women allow themselves to be humiliated by boys young enough to be their sons?” It has not been reported anywhere that these women unwillingly participated in that widely distributed video.
When watching the video it appeared that these women were thoroughly enjoying themselves; only until someone leaked it to the media. It had not been reported that any of these women lodged a complaint immediately after the shooting of the video. Surely, while we all want to throttle the Reitz Four we must equally hold these women accountable. Some idiot wanted to equate their position to that of a rape victim; but one should not even compare their exploits to someone who has been violated against her will.
There is a saying that, “no one rain drop thinks it caused the flood”. This speaks directly to the issues of individual responsibility. Collectively if we are to proceed on the basis that “it wasn’t me”, the potential consequences of our actions may be adverse and extreme. Abdication and diffusion of responsibility are the primary impediment to progress we seek as a nation. It begins with us as individuals to accept our own responsibilities in order that we can and should earn the right to hold others, especially those we have entrusted with the responsibility of government, accountable for their actions.
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39 Responses to “The endemic culture of blame-shifting and victimhood”
OMG, there is a sane person in SA! Hooray Sentletse, best article I have read for a long while on TL. Unfortunately, your voice has been drowned out by the other loose cannons rampaging through SA these past few years. People are too scared to criticise the ANC, no doubt you will be accused of being a counter revolutionery for this article as well. Imagine how difficult it is for a white skin to do so!
Thabo Mbeki, sometime last year, asked that whoever has a transcript or any record at all, of him saying that HIV does not cause AIDS, must please step forward.
Just like him, I did not hold my breath, but I am still waiting …
The media and “people” have a love affair with buzz-words; “Xenophobia” has run its course now its time for “Denialism”.
Brilliant Sentletse and right on the mark…I’ve been saying this for years and nice to see someone else [with the balls] to say what you have said and so eloquently.
I wrote a piece called ‘Is HIV a lifestyle choice’ and I received all sorts of hate mail…well Sentletse, I for one back your sentiments.
David Patient, person living with HIV/AIDS since 1983.
@Sentletse
I agree with the points you’re articulating, however you should also find fault with those you love. The things you mention cut across all political parties, and which most of them happen to be co-rulers with the ANC. Why not take responsibility for your party’s fallibility while asking others to do the same.I’m not an ANC supporter but I don’t believe all the misgivings you have reside only in the ANC. Sentletse it’s abasic principle of balancing the equation, criticise but do it in a non partisan way.
Sentletse, I could not agree with you more. Since I can last remember Thabo Mbeki has been cast as this non-caring individual willing to put his fellow country-men in harms way of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. This argument was never supported by any proof that could show that goverment policies as pursue at the time were responsible for the escalation in rates of infection. If there is such fact the people who feel strongly aggrieved could and should have sought a civil case against the previous goverment. But no sir, that will blow their sails away. Evidence of the purpoted and culpability of “genocide” must be proven and that is a risk they are not willing to take.
Sentletse, your article is excellent journalism and i salute you! Personally i do not believe that politicians holds the answers to our problems today and once they are voted in they tend to forget they work for us anyway. How will we remind them of this…?
There’s a kissing cousin to the culture of blame/victimhood.
It’s the culture of entitlement. Don’t get off your rump and actually DO anything. Just idly loaf around, waiting your turn. It surely HAS to come around, like the dealing of a hand of cards.
Africa is idly waiting her turn. She was “victimised” by colonialism. Now “they” have to put it right. Africa must just await her turn.
@Sipho: I fail to understand your point. Sentletse is not writing about the ANC but about the general population.
He is writing about the ladies who were victims of the Reitz four, about people who don’t take responsibility for their sexual behaviour, about people who blame Mbeki for all ills, etc.
Some of these may be ANC members/voters, and others may not be. So how is he being partisan?
This is what I’ve been saying that the intellectual in SA should be questioning the government on their policies and not play cheer leaders to them. Speaking of the AID treatment program, it was Doctor Zuma that said that the government was not going to setup an AID treatment program because it would cost too much money. Now President Zuma goes on CNN and say that this was not the ANC policy on AID treatment but the personal policy of president Mbeki and Dr. Manto. Sipho, the ANC was the ruling party and they should be held accountable. I do not understand your logic in your comment.
It is truely one of the best articles I have read on TL and it exactly point out what I have been thinking for years as well. Thabo Mbeki never in my recollection ever denied that HIV causes Aids and like Mos Native and others, I also have waited for the evidence that point to that. What he however did propogate was to not only look at the pandemic and its causes in a narrow way only, the result being that becos it was unpopular for various reasons, he has become for the current admin. and the mainstream medicinal fraternity a thorn in the flesh and a scapegoat. One of the most disturbing things is also how our media/and other academics have without critical forethought knowingly (and unknowingly)pursued the easy route and have labelled him an AIDS denialist. I have yet to read and hear in the media (and mainstream academia) that leading a healthy and responsible lifestyle (proper nutrition, abstinence, using condoms) is as impoortant as taking antiretrovirals. What has emerged instead is that it is a either or situation and that Mbeki was totally offline in asking critical questions. I do not agree with that at all, especially considering the social ills in the country. And here I have only pointed to the politisation of the issue on national and macro level, not to even come to the question of individual responsibility which is also equally important.
And I am not for one minute saying that TM is faultless. Anyone who has ever read some of my comments on TL and other blogs can attest to that BUT my goodness to blame one man for this pandemic and its continued rate is as truely thoughtless as anything else. If he were to be hauled before any court, commission etc, then so should the whole collective ANC administrations from 1994 and so should thousands/millions of people that have recklessly on THEIR OWN INDIVIDUAL CHOICE be brought there too (victimes of rape, bloodtransfusions).
@Chico
It’s simple, when you say Thabo is not the only one to blame, you’re saying he may be guilty but what about the others. Why drag in the others instead of dealing with individual culpability. No negative word is mentioned on DA, Cope and others in government who get paid through our taxes.Me thinks it’s easy to attack HIV infected people and the Reitz cleaners, they don’t have the capacity to fight back. How about the powerful whose wives get free shares and it’s considered acceptable and above board? How about those who use state resources to fund their clandestine party activities?
You are brilliant! on both AIDS and the Reitz 4 et al.
Regarding the ANC, I keep wanting to sing aloud (to the tune of the ‘one for the ladies’ Vodacom ad) ‘Who’s the oppostion? Who’s the oppositition?
It seems the ANC has forgotten…but that’s okay, it takes the pressure off.
I mean when someone does hte opposite and stands for accountability, radical honesty and honour and integrity — what does the media do?
I have not met one journalist at one newspaper in south africa; nor one lawyer in this country that is interested in representing an individual who stands for honour, integrity and brutal honesty!
NOT ONE!
The evidence has been documented… and by the media — IGNORED!
Sentletse
A mini masterpiece of balance. Gareth van Onselen also wrote an excellent piece on mediocrity in similar vein. Keep going the both of you. It may be tough going, but it will not be a sysiphian task.
“Surely, while we all want to throttle the Reitz Four we must equally hold these women accountable.”
YOU MEAN WHY DID THEY WAIT FOR BREAKFAST AND ASK FOR TAXI FARE IN THE MORNING or DO YOU MEAN BECAUSE MANDELA DID NOT ASK FOR REPARATIONS FOR BEING WRONGFULLY IMPRISONED THAN HE WAS IRRESPONSIBLE
or you mean it like What was the Africans doing allow themselves to enslaved colonised and subjected to apartheid, or you mean it like what were the Jews doing allowing themselves to be put in camps maybe you mean it like the victims of Hiroshima should have known that the West had atom bombs…WHAT DO YOU MEAN REALLY THAT A RAPIST IS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE ACTIONS OF HER RAPER????
OK, assume that all of those in government, everywhere in the world, assume responsibility for their failures. What should they do? Resign? Some do apologize but what is this worth? Like Manuel admitting a alck fo judgemnt about his expensive car purchase at taxpayers’ expense, , yet still happily keeping it? Would these leeches simply give up their lucrative posts for the sake of the public good? And would the next administration automatically be honest, scrupulously ethical and moral? Don’t kid yourselves. You voted for them after all, and can’t remove them for five years during which they do as they please.
Nice to hear somebody questioning things for once, yet being very reasonable. Maybe its time for all South Africans to behave like adults and acknowledge how if we are not part of the solution, then we are part of the problem. Feeling entitled to things you have not worked for or privileges you have not earned, demanding and never giving anything back, whinging, wining, blameshifting, finding fault and pointing fingers will never solve our problems.
I have heard intelligent South Africans I admire and respect and who expect alot from their leaders go on to blame foreigners for the HIV/Aids epidemic?? “They brought it here!” Now that’s denialism for sure.
It is time for us to take responsibility for the children we are failing to raise properly who become criminals, for the HIV we are spreading because we sleep around and do not get tested and for the hatred we harbour for anyone who is perceived to be ‘not like us’, even against fellow Africans!
Truth is I don’t think this Peacock regime give two hoots. They are voted in on the basis of “passop vir die wit gevaar” and so what you see and have seen unfolding before your eyes is consistent failure and denial of catostrophic proportions. But things will get worse a lot worse for the majority until they get better. Basically as it stands right now, no one has killed more South Africans or created the largest poverty stricken mass ever in the history of this country than the party that has led it from 1995 this far. It is a tragedy.
@MuAfrika - if you continue reading that same paragraph, further down it says;
“Some idiot wanted to equate their position to that of a rape victim; but one should not even compare their exploits to someone who has been violated against her will.”
What Sentletse points out is that these women were willing participants in those degrading acts.
What that speaks to on a deeper level is that conditioning of racial inferiority which allowed these women to view those white students as superior persons to whom they should always be that typical smiling obsequieous black person.
Setlentse I agree with you when you sya that Mbeki is wrongfully being blamed for everything that goes wrong in this country. I was abssolutely disgustd just this morning when I read that the SACP were likening Malema’s racist insult against Cronin to a “Mbeki stlyle of political engagement”. Mbeki had nothing but respect for Cronin and ptomoted tolerance.
I disagree with you on the issue of the Reitz four. They deserve to rot in jail for the rest of their miserable little lives.
You’ve either missed the point of a well-written piece or being deliberately glib because the point has been too well made.
I have made similar points about the Reitz 4 and the role of the women. People must take responsibility for their actions.
Your comparison to a rape victim is completely misplaced. The rapist must take full responsibilty for HIS actions, no matter how much she dressed “provocatively” or “was asking for it”.
By the way all those crimes against humanity were resisted in various ways - hardly “allowing” subjugation as you put it?
Unfortunately, your attempt to reject the author’s views have ended up supporting it!
I wanted to say that the Reitz women are not to blame. They were degraded possibly because they did not know how to react to those four little barbarians and were most likely too humiliated to make any complaints. The only reason why they spoke out after the tape was made public is because they had no choice but to talk about it, their shame was aired for all to see. They ARE taking responsibility by protesting against having those students pardoned.
I agree with you on what you’re saying about Mbeki. It is utterly disgusting that the Zuma camp want to blame the man who is almost singularly responsible for South Africa’s economic success, for all their problems.
@ Mos_Native But does it need to be debated that some people, with less or no education believe that white people are superior, so even if the women could not say thy don’t want to participate, if ‘young master’ says do you do to keep your job and feed your children.
The problem with the present day African ‘middle class’ that blogs is they pretend to not know the psyche of the people, after all they are no longer ‘black’ and refuse to have any understanding of ‘black experience’ (See Summo, Ndumiso and often Khaya on the issue of projecting black experience)
@ Zoo Keeper i asked questions they are still not answered i did not make statements so go back and re-read my questions also, this time with less arrogance.
We are beginning a new era in our country now. The era of less white guilt and more apologetic voices of the ‘black middle class’ who are not meeting everyday prejudice becasue of their social class-basicly the women of reitz have no voice and chances are the only voice for the poor will become the street violence mob driven strikes.
Again is the blogger here suggesting that blaming and victimhood is bad but this article is about him blaming and telling us we are victims of the Mandela Mbeki and now Zuma leadership…So what does he mean really? That only he has a right to point a finger? Yet the Young Communist League is brainless to doit!
Another blog with Mbeki in it. Sentle we!, can’t you write a blog and not say anything about your former president? Seriously dude, do you get paid for this?
It is encouraging that people are thinking about this issue. That is the value of your remarks in my respectful view but-So what Mr Diakanyo? You’ve identified some politicions to blame for past mistakes. I might add: you seem to make yourself part of the blame game. What solution is there to make governments more accountable on these and other issues? You concede that HIV causes Aids. The previous government’s notion that poverty contributes to the problem is obvious. That being so, at least the current government is making clearer public statements which indicate a move towards addressing the HIV aspect of the pandemic. This enables the reasonable expectation that poverty burdened individuals who are victims of the virus will at least have a chance of delivery by the government of access to ARV’s and medical care without which no amount of prosperity or even job security will make any difference. Any aids victim will tell you it will not help them to give them a nice house and a job and ask them to eat more beetroot! Actual delivery on this is the next step.
@MuAfrika, how about China should have known that the Japanese were going to bomb their major cities. I see that you didn’t read about Imperial Japan prior to world war two. Tojo killed thousandth of his own soldiers in Northern China as excuse to attack Russia in 1935. Once again MuAfrika, you missed the point of the whole article and what the author was saying.
@MuAfrika - what you allude to is very real. There is what a friend of mine refers to as an ahistorical group (black and white) who do not believe that there were certain events and a particular type of existence before 1994. And that those events and that existence has current consequences. The “lets just move on” brigade.
That condition, that black psyche, unfortunately it does need to be voiced on the web.
While we are at it am off to slaugher me a cow for all the cultural supremists and Bible-bashers locking up their grandparents and protecting the animals….
The short answer is that every sensible person knows that accepting blame is legal and political suicide. As a general rule of survival, we (humans) are programmed to avoid suicide. Probably even the leading Lemmings don’t accept responsibility for the intermittent mass suicide of their species.
Since we now live in a world dominated by the democratic ideal… and since the governments of most functional places are composed of, and drawn from, those who were, in less enlightened times, the ‘underclass’; and since everyone who has been a member of an underclass is fully aware of the repercussions of being wrong: one could argue that we are behaviorally programmed to avoid accepting accountability…
This quaintly old-fashioned idea regarding acceptance of accountability (or falling on one’s sword)is a hallmark of what Nietzsche would have called ‘Noble’ behavior… ( in contradistinction to ‘Resenttiment’ behavior: see Geneology of morals: Master/slave morality: Nietzsche) and nobility is only fashionable these days when it comes to tearing drugged cattle apart.
@Muafria, the point is that Japan was not a peaceful loving people before world war two as you were trying to imply in your comment. Also, when you kill your cow I hope it’s painless and I wish you could send me a piece of beef for barbecue. You SA love our barbecue and collard greens with cornbread.
HIV is a virus. AIDS is a syndrome. Mbeki asked parliament: “How can a virus cuase a syndrome?”
Yes, that is not denying but putting a problem into proper context and perspective.
Treatment boosts immune using nutrients from food consumed in a hope to prolong life of the infected but does not cure conditions to be brought by the virus or prevent the subsequent death.
Excellent article! Please excuse me from straying from the topic a bit. I personally would like to shake Mbeki’s hand and certainly not prosecute him. It seems that everybody is ignoring the fact, that there has been in fact great controversy regarding HIV/AIDS causality and ARV’s for quite some time.
AIDS is steeped in so much scandal since the very beginning, when a special brand of AIDS indicator diseases were formulated for Africa, I could not possibly be in my right mind if I believed anything the AIDS specialists or pharmaceutical industries are saying anymore. The list is endless about the cover-ups concerning HIV/AIDS and dangers of ARV’s.
After realizing the truth about AIDS, I have come to the conclusion that the HIV diagnosis and the handing out of ARV’s are the real killers. The HIV diagnosis is the psychological killer and ARV’s is so toxic, you might very well end up with AIDS, even if you never really had it in the first place.
I believe people’s immune systems are severely compromised due to lack of good nutrition, chronic diseases such as STD’s etc. - people are dying from age-old diseases, which is now packaged neatly into a brand name called AIDS, and it is a very lucrative business, with no regard for the anguish people are being put through. Want free DVD - send postal address to candyrover@ymail.com
Sentletse, my man you are the man! Let’s hope Jacob and his trusty crew read your column. i know i will read it faithfully. You make such sen(t)se man!!
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Sentletse Diakanyo's blogs may contain views on any subject which may upset sensitive readers. Parental Guidance is strongly adviced. He is not a journalist and his readers should not unreasonably expect balanced articles.
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OMG, there is a sane person in SA! Hooray Sentletse, best article I have read for a long while on TL. Unfortunately, your voice has been drowned out by the other loose cannons rampaging through SA these past few years. People are too scared to criticise the ANC, no doubt you will be accused of being a counter revolutionery for this article as well. Imagine how difficult it is for a white skin to do so!
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