Mangaung and the past American Presidential Election.

Mangaung and the past American Presidential Election

A lesson for South African politicians in the gracious art of losing

Not long ago I wrote about the importance of being able to lose gracefully. It’s the basis of democracy, this knowledge that you could be voted out of whatever position you hold if that’s the will of the majority.

I was impressed by the speeches at the end of the American presidential election, and particularly that of the losing candidate, Mitt Romney.

It was a nail-bitingly close election and Romney must have been deeply disappointed to lose when he had come so close to the winning post, but he graciously conceded victory and wished President Obama and his family well, promising to support him in making America great.

And he sounded as though he actually meant it.

I was not a Romney fan during the run-up to the election. I felt he was too smooth, too rich and a little slippery.

But after hearing his speech I reckoned he wasn’t such a bad guy after all. He played by the rules, he lost and he accepted his loss gracefully.

In cricketing terms he tipped his hat to the bowler and walked straight-backed to the pavilion.

I compare that to the times the ANC lost elections in the Western Cape. Oh, the whining and accusations and threats! All very unpleasant, it was. We boast about our new democracy and then cry like babies when democracy actually works.

We claim to be working for the people, then when we lose an election we threaten to make the province ungovernable.

In the run-up to our historic 1994 switch to democracy we held long and carefully thought-out conferences to design what is recognized as one of the best constitutions in the world. Everybody involved was pleased and proud to have been a part of it.

Two of the leaders were awarded Nobel Peace Prizes.

But now it seems some of our leaders are uncomfortable with the system. We claim to live by the rule of law, but when the law isn’t on our side we’re happy to bend it, ignore it or even break it.

Maybe we need to spend more time studying the gracious art of losing.

Modern democracy’s a puzzling thing. All the parties claim to have the same goals. They all want to reduce crime and corruption. They all want to improve the education and health systems. They all want to reduce unemployment and to provide homes for the homeless.

So what are we squabbling about?

Is it all just about who gets to ride in fancy official cars and fly free in first-class on SAA? Is it about who gets to live in large official residences and attend lavish dinners?

Things like these are not mentioned in our much-vaunted constitution, but they seem to take up more of our politicians’ time than the actual everyday running of our country.

Argus

Tavern of the seas

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