The solution to the F*cked-up South African Politics is Philosophy!

“In a state, virtue should be the chief aim, and unless philosophers become rulers, or rulers become students of philosophy, there will be unceasing troubles for states and human at large.” – George G. M. James.

You don’t need a qualification in Philosophy to be a Philosopher. In fact, this article is not referring to those philosophers who went to school to study Philosophy as a profession because they are confusing as f*ck.

The primary purpose of Philosophy in ancient times was the salvation of the soul. The aim was to create a balance and harmony in the three faculties of the soul (mind, emotion and will) through the practice and exercise of virtue and wisdom.

Of the four cardinal virtues coined by Plato, wisdom is the greatest. By definition, Philosophy is “love of wisdom”. On the other hand, virtue is the behavior that shows high moral standards.

Philosophers were avid readers, as the definition entails (lovers of wisdom), which seems to be a reasonable and sufficient definition. Philosophers dedicated their lives in empowering and feeding their souls with activities that will enable them to control not only their minds but also their emotions. Therefore, their choices, decisions and actions were informed because they were coming from sensible mind and disciplined emotions.

Integrity, Respect, Wisdom, Justice, Love, Self-discipline (or self-control), Fortitude, Humility, etc., were among the cardinal virtues they strived for on a daily basis.

They practiced self-respect, hence they were respectful to others. They practiced self-love, and they loved others as much as they loved themselves. Most importantly, the philosophers practiced self-leadership and taught others all cardinal virtues required for a happy and successful life, and that qualified them to lead others because they were virtuous.

I therefore agree with Plato when he says, “things would be all right when philosophers ruled the world.” The philosophers were concerned about making the world a better place to live in.

It is unfortunate that Philosophy has lost its initial purpose and value; over time, it evolved to be a discipline that is sophisticated and confusing. It is high time to revive the goodness of philosophy for the benefits of saving souls, our country and the lives of future generations.

We are currently embroiled in a state of turmoil due to COVID-19 but the corrupt (evil and moral depraved) politicians have the audacity to loot the state resources (mostly money) that were meant to serve as COVID-19 emergency funds.

Over R2.2 Billion has been plundered by high officials who have sworn under oath to protect and uphold the high moral standards of the country as required by the constitution.

According the Special Investigation Unit (SIU), which was hired by President Ramaphosa to investigate all allegations of corruption related to COVID-19 relief fund, the R2.2 billion reported to be under investigation is just the tip of the iceberg.

The word corruption has lost its value and meaning nowadays. Corruption now sounds like a buzzword, because it has been on the tips of our tongues at least since the dawn of democracy. The sickening part as of late, the youth is making jokes about this whole corruption tragedy, which is derailing our progress as a country, without realizing that eventually, they are the ones who will have to pay and make up for the looted resources through tax.

The problem is that, we have entrusted old, incapable and highly incompetent individuals who have demonstrated repeatedly that their sole intentions for power is self-enrichment. People who pursued positions of leadership to advance their own interest instead of those they are serving.

Yet we continue to vote for them, giving them power to rule us, all in the spirit of comradeship? Gone must be the days where people are appointed to positions of power solely on the basis that they served jail time during apartheid. We are grateful for those freedom fighters but it's time for them to sit down now. Otherwise we will continue swimming in poverty while handcuffed from behind with petty-humor.

The solution, to our government fiasco, would be to replace it with Philosophers. I propose! Socrates, who is regarded as the father of western Philosophy said “Philosophy wasn’t a profession, as with sophists, but a way of life. He was deeply concerned with morality, with discovering the just, the truth, and the good.

Imagine a government full of young vibrant, virtuous, ambitious and competent individuals whose desire is purely to elevate South Africa to greater heights. This country has the potential to become a world superpower; we only need to mobilize philosophers in the right positions of power. We are more than capable!

Allow these words by Paul Kagame, President of Rwanda to reverberate in your mind;  

“I would rather argue that we need to mobilize the right mindsets, rather than more funding. After all, in Africa, we have everything we need in real terms. Whatever is lacking, we have the means to acquire, yet we remain mentally married to the idea that nothing can moving without external finance. We are even begging for things we already have. That is absolutely a failure of mindset.”