Controlling media not solution to all problems - Dr Ramphele

"Africa is littered with visions of tragedies, and South Africa is in danger of becoming another tragedy - the same way as Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, DRC, Angola, to name only a few, where the people's dreams have been killed by self-styled leaders," Dr Ramphele told delegates today, Wednesday, 11 August 2010, attending the Discovery Invest Leadership Summit in Johannesburg.

"Assume they are the sole source"

"Leaders of liberation movements assume they are the sole source of success struggle, and in the process they have become all-knowledgeable and positioned themselves as the sole custodians of people's lives," Dr Ramphele, an academic and qualified medical doctor, said.

"We should stick to ongoing participation and open conversation about issues, needs and history, which is essential to give ordinary people the voice to review and assess public policy, and also address the problem of discipline," she said, adding that participation makes everyone feel equal before the law.

"Good leaders embrace the participation of ordinary people in solving problems," she said.

She slammed SA's new leaders for succumbing to political patronage, and attempting to control the media.

"Where are the leaders?"

She said: "Our country is in state of growing despair so soon after the success of the [2010 FIFA] World Cup. Where are the leaders to instil hope and confidence in the face of xenophobia? Where are the business leaders to join Tokyo in defending the freedom of the media?"

"We should not think that controlling the media is the solution of our problems," she said.

Dr Ramphele believes that controlling the media is a fear factor. "We seem to be going back to the politics of fear so soon after only 16 years. The introduction of a media tribunal and the Protection of Information Bill is something each one of us should rise against."

She also said media bosses have a case to answer, for letting the standard of journalism decline due to lack of investment in journalism. As a result, she said, politicians have taken advantage of these weaknesses to criticise and to attempt to control the media.

SA suffering from a trust deficit

Dr Ramphele said SA society was suffering from a trust deficit, an issue many refuse to confront as it will raise many questions.

She regretted that, 16 years down the line, the SA society still struggles with a gap between vision and reality. "Africa's greatest assets are its assets," she said. "But, very little is being done to enhance the well-being of these assets."

She said in a complex society such as SA and Africa, where public resources are looted on a massive scale and 'tenderpreneurship' reigns, good leadership requires wisdom and sharing goals.

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