Seeing our own shadows as we shine a light on corruptionLori-Rae Van Laren - 15 Oct 2013
As a South African it is difficult to avoid a conversation about corruption. If you sit at a dinner table for long enough with other South Africans the topic of discussion will invariably turn to how the government is "wasting our money." There is an air of entitlement in our tone, a sense that it is our tax money that the government is stealing.
I have had the privilege this year of spending a few hours once a week at an education centre in Khayelitsha (an informal settlement near Cape Town). Every day, after normal school hours, the children arrive at the education centre with no incentive except the opportunity to learn. Every child that I have spoken to has an aspiration to finish school, to study further, to start a business. But every Tuesday afternoon we sit with one dog-eared History textbook between eighteen of us. The children are unsure of what section they will cover next, what content will be in the exam.
The Department of Education's budget for 2013 is R232.5-billion. Almost 90% of that budget is used to pay salaries with very little accountability for how much work is done in return.
It's generally accepted the nation's public education system is in a deplorable state. On a recent tour of parliament our guide told us of the fear government has about enforcing the recent campaign for minimum norms and standards for school infrastructure because of the potential schools will have to sue the government if these standards are not met.
When we shine a light on corruption I wonder who we will find there. I think we may be surprised to see our own shadows reflecting off the walls. I wonder how inclusive the ‘our’ in ‘our money’ is. Perhaps it’s time we start defining ‘our’ as ‘our nation’ and ‘our people’ rather than ‘ourselves’. It is only when the taxpayer does this, when the teacher does this, when I do this that we will banish the darkness of corruption from the kingdom of heavenly light.
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