FRUSTRATIONS OF BEING IGNORED

Sir,

As I reminisced at the way things are done in the country by the leadership, I could only come to the conclusion that there is a blatant and complete disregard for the wishes of the electorate in the matters of governance, to the extent that voices of the electorate count for nothing. Not that I was amazed at this revelation, it’s just that these days there seems to be insolence on the part of government, indicating that it is intent on doing as it pleases with no regard for views of the electorate. Actually, the long and short of it is that our voices count for nothing.

Thinking of the dilemma of the electorate I was reminded of a statement made by former President of the USA George W Bush, who summed up governance under a democratic system; governments govern by the will of the governed. Given what obtains in this country, it seems to me no matter how hard government will try to impress us, as long as it continues to project the attitude that it shall have its way on matters; our perception of our unique democracy as provided for in the Constitution will remain warped. The reason progressives are forever lambasting the Tinkhundla system of government as unworkable is because of an insolent government that wants to have things its way.

Problem

It’s not an institutional problem but a personality problem on the part of those at the helm. As a result of what I have mentioned above, it should not be difficult to see that the electorate is a very frustrated lot. If the happiness of this country’s electorate or citizens was to be measured, as sometimes happens in civilized societies; Eswatini would rank low in the index. The greatest frustration you can have in life is to talk to individuals but be ignored. As history has a habit of repeating itself, I could not help but reflect on experiences of other countries that were plunged into political anarchy and chaos, just because citizens spoke and authorities couldn’t listen. Tunisia and Libya are still fresh in our minds, and these are examples we would choose not to remember for our sakes.

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