Last week, we saw thousands of people going on looting and plunder spree sparked by what was supposed to be protests against the jailing of former president Jacob Zuma. I believe many people joined in on the unrest not because they care for Zuma's incarceration but because the chaos presented an opportunity to grab food and other goods they ordinarily may not have access to.
This behaviour should not be surprising for a country that has watched the political elite get away with looting, corruption, maladministration and for the most part, failing its citizenry. The culture of impunity has trickled down to everyday citizens.
Why should they have a moral compass or protect infrastructure that does not wholly benefit them and, above this, why should they protect a system that the political elite use for their own benefit, without conscience or shame, even to the detriment of the people they should be serving.
Social justice media organisation, New Frame, puts it perfectly by saying “there has been a common tendency to understand the ways in which impoverished people make their lives and express their demands as consequent to criminality rather than material and political conditions”.
What we saw, although initially spurred by protests around Zuma, was by many a response to the political conditions of this country, which is characterised by hunger, poverty, and alarming rates of unemployment, precipitated by the Covid-19 pandemic.
The state has mostly failed the citizens of this country; it is not surprising that citizens would grab the opportunity to take what they can, similar to the very politicians who loot whatever contracts, networks and public funds they can get their hands on.
This behaviour is not surprising for a country marred by high levels of corruption where a citizenry has seen billions go to waste and there is no accountability but a culture of impunity. When we say the state has failed citizens, people think we are saying people should be given handouts. No.
The state has failed in creating a conducive state for people to be active participants in a healthy and thriving economy that gives them equitable access to jobs, education, healthcare and sustenance.
Our law is going to be so effective ensuring the people said to have looted are brought to book, but such vigour is hardly seen when the political elite is involved. This is not to say those involved should not be brought to book, this is to say the same vigour and dedication should be applied in all instances of crime.
I have loved the conversations many South Africans have been having, that a lot of these things can be true at once. That we admit that there are opportunistic elements, that there is criminality, but there are also those who ideally would have not looted if they had alternatives. They are simply securing their needs. If like you and I, they had jobs, food and basic needs met, many would’ve chosen to look on.
We do not take the time to think about the sheer desperation poverty creates. We want to be rational, but rationality sometimes cannot prevail when you live from hand to mouth or does not supersede the prospects of, for once, not worrying about your next meal.
Criminality notwithstanding, there is nothing dignifying about rampaging for food. Many do so out of desperation because of the state of our society. If there is one thing humans strive for, it is dignity.
I do not think we realise that at those moments, for some people, it is genuinely doing what they can for survival. Because there are no viable ways for them to secure this survival, without capacitation and access to resources, people are left with very few choices.
Unless there is a deliberate and conscious effort to deal with the inequalities in our country, what we've just seen in the past week is going to be a permanent feature in our lives.
We are quick to shout “but the economy” when we see such events take place. But what economy should people have an allegiance to when they have never felt its material contributions to their everyday lives?
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