Mandela Day could not have come sooner for the millions of South Africans whose livelihoods depend on the kindness of others.
The care they received this week through acts of kindness is probably something they will cherish for a long time and hope could be replicated daily.
But it’s now back to the old ‘reality’ of either begging or lining up at any pop-up soup kitchen in order to have something to eat.
It is a discomforting sight that would most certainly have the founding fathers and mothers of our democratic South Africa turning in their graves.
So severe is the situation that confronts millions of compatriots that one mother resorted to boiling water using wood fire for hours on end to give the impression that she was preparing a meal for her children until they fell asleep.
Others have come with similar desperate and sometimes deadly ideas as the cost of living becomes unbearable.
It’s precisely for this reason, among others, that no government should take pride in the fact that millions of its citizens depend on social grants.
While this kind of support is to be commended, none of us can take comfort that a large section of the population lives from hand to mouth.
With another interest rate hike on the cards on Thursday, while salaries remain the same, many will find it even more difficult to get through the month.
Perhaps most disheartening of all is that there is a severe lack of political will to cushion the most vulnerable in our society.
No one can justify the huge budget cuts to non-profit organisations aiding children and abused women while Cabinet ministers and other highly paid office-bearers are handsomely rewarded with annual increases.
It is not only a betrayal to Madiba’s legacy, but to his entire generation which prioritised the needs of the most downtrodden.
As another Mandela Day has come and gone, his remarks that “freedom is meaningless if people cannot put food in their stomachs” should give the current crop of leaders food for thought, especially ahead of next year’s most crucial elections.
Cape Times