University must create ethical leaders

The Minister of Justice and Correctional Services, Mr Ronald Lamola, said freedom could never be fully realized in South Africa as long as the people were excluded from the economy and continued to be on the periphery.

Lamola said 1994 had ushered in a change and a new dream for the people, a dream that had not been fully realized as some sectors still stubbornly refused to adopt to changes emanating from the democratic dispensation. “We might have ushered in a democratic breakthrough, but 25 years later, we are still yet to usher in an economic breakthrough and our people continue to be victims of squalid conditions that they live in. Why is it that 25 years into democracy, we are still battling to transcend socio-economic challenges like inequality, high level of unemployment among Africans, structural economic oppression of blacks and corruption which is an impediment to democracy and constitutionalism?”

Minister Lamola was speaking during a public lecture about the justice system since 1994 at the University of Venda a fortnight ago.

Lamola said universities must create ethical leaders. “If we fail to create ethical leaders, our society will crumble to a point where we will have a failed state. There are examples that show that education without ethics only benefits a select few. When we do not have ethical leadership, it is the poorest of the poor that feel the brunt of our actions as professionals. If our respective professionals were truly ethical and committed to black excellence, I have little doubt that we would not be in the situation our country finds itself in today,” he said.

He told the students that corruption was not the result of politicians only, but was aided by a very sophisticated group of professionals. “The effect of corruption has a human face and it is that of old women begging for their pensions. It is torn feet of the mother with a baby on her back walking far to access water, despite the fact that billions were set aside from the fiscus to ensure that a dam gets built,” he said.

The students were advised to use their knowledge to reshape their communities for the better. “The knowledge you obtain here should have direct bearing on our communities. It is for this reason that I believe the departments I lead should partner with universities across the country,” he said.

“We must look ahead and follow all the monies that were looted from the State through corruption and maladministration and make sure that, as leaders, we are preoccupied with serving our people and not enriching ourselves. We can look ahead by making education fashionable, so that the youth of our country will know that there are no shortcuts in life but only hard work and dedication will contribute to more jobs that our country is so much in need of,” he said.

News - Date: 03 October 2019

Mbulaheni Ridovhona

The 22-year-old Mbulaheni (Gary) Ridovhona has been passionate about journalism to the extent that he would buy himself a copy of weekly Univen students' newsletter, Our Voice. After reading, he would write stories about his rural village, Mamvuka, and submit them to the very newsletter for publication. His deep-rooted love for words and writing saw him register for a Bachelor of Arts in Media Studies at the University of Venda, and joined the Limpopo Mirror team in February 2016 as a journalism intern.

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