The claim by International Relations Minister, Lindiwe Sisulu, that the Australian government is “misleading” its citizens who travel to South Africa about conditions here (Mercury, April 19) shows to what extent our rulers are cocooned in cotton wool.
If the Australian warning is wrong about the high level of crime, robberies, the hazards of mini-bus transport, unroadworthy vehicles and poor service from the SA Police, then can the minister explain how come:
510 people were killed on the roads during the recent Easter season; over 1,700 died on our roads in the 2017/18Festive season.
More than 2,000 were fined for driving unlicensed or unroadworthy vehicles during the Festive season; if crime is no big deal, why are there so many security companies?
if crime is not so bad, how come billions of Rand is spent on providing ANC politicians with bodyguards, elaborate security measures and Blue Light cavalcades?
That a mere 10% of cases handled by the SA Police result in convictions because of shoddy case compilation; that the murder of farmers continues unabated at a rate that is unprecedented for peacetime conditions.
Whether we like it or not, levels of murder, rape and crime in South Africa under the ANC are without precedent in our history. By issuing warnings as to how things are in this country, the Australian government is simply being honest about the facts. Who does minister Sisulu think she is fooling by protesting against those warnings?
Sent into The Mercury and published, 21 April 2018.
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