Published Letter in Sowetan on 20 January 2023, Page 16.

 Leadership Positions Belong to Educated People

Plato, the philosoper who found academics, wrote in his book The Republic that the educated should exclusively be entrusted with leadership, and that from the moment children are aware, they should be educated until they are adults.

There is a crisis in our state and it emanates from the previous administration. I do not take away from former president Jacob Zuma's term when he built two universities, Sol Plaatjie and Walter Sisulu, recreational parks, put SA in the Brics alliance and established the New Development Bank.

However, his decisions to deploy undereducated people in critical positions has collapsed our state and SOEs. Eskom has been changing CEOs regularly, with all of them not finishing their term of office because they were not capable of leading it.

Dudu Myeni was chairperson of SAA. It became insolvent, and after government bailouts and failed business rescue, was recently sold.

No one appointed as National Director of Public Prosecution has finished their 10-year term of office. One appointment, Nomgcobo Jibba, was struck off the bar of Advocates for being dishonest in affidavits.

There have also been questionable appointments: Des van Rooyen was appointed as finance minister without having experience or education related to the post. Former deputy Chief Justice Dikgang Moseneke was overlooked for appointment as Chief Justice after giving a dissenting judgment that the DPCI, also known as the Hawks should be a private entity to ensure its independance.

It is clear that some of the abuses of power and corruption that led to the collapse of the state could have been done out of ignorance. Was Nelson Mandela - who had a law degree - convicted for corruption? Or was Thabo Mbeki, who got his master's degree in economics? Unless we want to see the same theatrics for as many times and however long, there has to be a change, and for it to happen, educated, or even better, highly educated people, must be appointed in leadership positions.