Yesterday in South Africa, the reign of a moral giant (Nelson Mandela) followed by the rule of an aloof technocrat (Thabo Mbeki) officially gave way to the dominion of a man (Jacob Zuma) who has helped tarnish the "Rainbow Nation", perhaps beyond repair.
It is not only Mr Zuma's well-publicised Bring Me My Machine Gun serenade that gives pause. Or that his supporters in the ruling African National Congress took to labelling his opponents "cockroaches" and "snakes" during the latest campaign - the same smears that stoked the fiery hatred leading up to the 1994 Rwandan genocide and are tantamount, in South Africa's worsening economic times, to pouring gasoline on fire.
It is rather that the 67-year-old Mr Zuma appears so poorly disposed to repair the moral taint that pervades the government and party he now leads.
Graft charges against him involving an arms deal worth $5 billion (Dh18bn) were dismissed on a technicality this month, but doubts about his innocence persist among many South Africans - hardly the shining moral example the country needs at a time when it is rife with crime, corruption and cronyism.
Also, Mr Zuma was acquitted of rape charges three years ago, but he outraged many when he admitted having unprotected sex with his accuser, whom he knew to be HIV-positive. In his defence, Mr Zuma said he "had taken a shower afterward".
That Mr Zuma is hardly alone in subscribing to this widely held myth might make his ignorance easier to understand - except that at the time, he was head of the National Aids Council in a country where one out of every six people is infected with HIV.
Furthermore, a study by Harvard University last year blamed the ANC government in which Mr Zuma served as deputy prime minister for the Aids deaths of more than 343,000 South Africans.
Yet despite the appearance of indiscretion that surrounds him, Mr Zuma will win handily. He will now take over from Kgalema Motlanthe, the caretaker president, as the leader of Africa's richest and most developed country. He also will serve as the official host at next year's football World Cup.
The explanations for Mr Zuma's electoral success stem from the heart of South Africa's recent, turbulent history. One answer is his personality. Unlike the wonkish, diffident Mr Mbeki, he is a glad-handing populist - an "old-fashioned Zulu warlord", as one South African put it recently.
Another explanation is that for South Africa's black and poor majority, the debate over the morality and immorality of the ANC and its leaders pales in significance next to the party's leading role in toppling apartheid.
The ANC seldom fails to remind South Africans about this role, which created a vast reservoir of credibility that is far from running dry. Mr Zuma's victory is, finally, a testament to the ANC's control of most, if not all, the levers of power of the South African state.
Specifically, the black majority relies for most of its information on the powerful state-owned South African Broadcasting Corp.
The debate about crime, corruption and sexual peccadilloes is primarily a middle-class debate limited to the newspapers that the middle-class reads.
The cloud of impropriety that dogs Mr Zuma and the ANC was likely to cost them key middle-class support at the polls yesterday. Some believe this erosion - possibly costing the ANC its critical two-thirds majority in parliament and its ability to suppress investigations into its dealings - will be the country's gain and lead to a more vibrant democracy.
Others worry that the opposite will occur. Less-than-expected support for the ANC will threaten its overweening sense of historical destiny and reinforce the paranoia, conspiracy-mongering and other intriguing that churns among its senior leaders - a legacy of their years in exile. (As the movement's former spy chief, Mr Zuma is one of the party's most experienced schemers.)
Along with a tightening economy, the pressure on the ANC to appease its core supporters could become inexorable. Bill Douglas, a Johannesburg shop owner, believes the temptation to follow the path of another African liberation movement will then prove irresistible to the ANC.
"We're going down like Zimbabwe," said Mr Douglas, alluding to Zanu-PF, the ruling party next door, and its self-declared president-for-life, Robert Mugabe.
"'Take the white man's farm,' they'll say."
This scenario saddens more than angers Mr Douglas, 78, who was born near Wimbledon in London and emigrated to South Africa in 1947 with his mother ("I've sat through two bloody wars. I'm leaving," she told him.) Not even the iconic Mr Mandela can stop the eclipse of the "Rainbow Nation" and what is once seemed to epitomise, Mr Douglas said. "Madiba," as he is affectionately known, is now 90 and said to be losing his memory and be nearly deaf.
Furthermore, out of a sense of fidelity to their shared sufferings and triumphs, there is little prospect that Madiba will denounce the improprieties of fellow ANC members, who still publicly refer to each other as "comrade" and who, after yesterday, boast a president that once declared that the ANC will "rule South Africa until Jesus comes back".
For South Africa's future, Madiba's dwindling twilight is heart-breaking, Mr Douglas said, his voice wistful.
"We've produced one saint and one saint only. If he were 30 years younger, we might have a chance."
cnelson@thenational.ae
Moon Music
Artist: Coldplay
Label: Parlophone/Atlantic
Number of tracks: 10
Rating: 3/5
Coffee: black death or elixir of life?
It is among the greatest health debates of our time; splashed across newspapers with contradicting headlines - is coffee good for you or not?
Depending on what you read, it is either a cancer-causing, sleep-depriving, stomach ulcer-inducing black death or the secret to long life, cutting the chance of stroke, diabetes and cancer.
The latest research - a study of 8,412 people across the UK who each underwent an MRI heart scan - is intended to put to bed (caffeine allowing) conflicting reports of the pros and cons of consumption.
The study, funded by the British Heart Foundation, contradicted previous findings that it stiffens arteries, putting pressure on the heart and increasing the likelihood of a heart attack or stroke, leading to warnings to cut down.
Numerous studies have recognised the benefits of coffee in cutting oral and esophageal cancer, the risk of a stroke and cirrhosis of the liver.
The benefits are often linked to biologically active compounds including caffeine, flavonoids, lignans, and other polyphenols, which benefit the body. These and othetr coffee compounds regulate genes involved in DNA repair, have anti-inflammatory properties and are associated with lower risk of insulin resistance, which is linked to type-2 diabetes.
But as doctors warn, too much of anything is inadvisable. The British Heart Foundation found the heaviest coffee drinkers in the study were most likely to be men who smoked and drank alcohol regularly.
Excessive amounts of coffee also unsettle the stomach causing or contributing to stomach ulcers. It also stains the teeth over time, hampers absorption of minerals and vitamins like zinc and iron.
It also raises blood pressure, which is largely problematic for people with existing conditions.
So the heaviest drinkers of the black stuff - some in the study had up to 25 cups per day - may want to rein it in.
Rory Reynolds
Racecard
2pm Handicap Dh 90,000 1,800m
2.30pm Handicap Dh120,000 1,950m
3pm Handicap Dh105,000 1,600m
3.30pm Jebel Ali Classic Conditions Dh300,000 1,400m
4pm Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
4.30pm Conditions Dh250,000 1,400m
5pm Maiden Dh75,000 1,600m
5.30pm Handicap Dh85,000 1,000m
The National selections:
2pm Arch Gold
2.30pm Conclusion
3pm Al Battar
3.30pm Golden Jaguar
4pm Al Motayar
4.30pm Tapi Sioux
5pm Leadership
5.30pm Dahawi
PROFILE OF HALAN
Started: November 2017
Founders: Mounir Nakhla, Ahmed Mohsen and Mohamed Aboulnaga
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: transport and logistics
Size: 150 employees
Investment: approximately $8 million
Investors include: Singapore’s Battery Road Digital Holdings, Egypt’s Algebra Ventures, Uber co-founder and former CTO Oscar Salazar
Second Test
In Dubai
Pakistan 418-5 (declared)
New Zealand 90 and 131-2 (follow on)
Day 3: New Zealand trail by 197 runs with 8 wickets remaining
Jawan
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3EAtlee%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStars%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Shah%20Rukh%20Khan%2C%20Nayanthara%2C%20Vijay%20Sethupathi%26nbsp%3B%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E4%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylinder turbo
Power: 240hp at 5,500rpm
Torque: 390Nm at 3,000rpm
Transmission: eight-speed auto
Price: from Dh122,745
On sale: now
Washmen Profile
Date Started: May 2015
Founders: Rami Shaar and Jad Halaoui
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Laundry
Employees: 170
Funding: about $8m
Funders: Addventure, B&Y Partners, Clara Ventures, Cedar Mundi Partners, Henkel Ventures
How to increase your savings
- Have a plan for your savings.
- Decide on your emergency fund target and once that's achieved, assign your savings to another financial goal such as saving for a house or investing for retirement.
- Decide on a financial goal that is important to you and put your savings to work for you.
- It's important to have a purpose for your savings as it helps to keep you motivated to continue while also reducing the temptation to spend your savings.
- Carol Glynn, founder of Conscious Finance Coaching
The specs
Engine: 4.0-litre, twin-turbocharged V8
Transmission: nine-speed automatic
Power: 630bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh810,000
The specs
Engine: 2.0-litre 4-cylturbo
Transmission: seven-speed DSG automatic
Power: 242bhp
Torque: 370Nm
Price: Dh136,814
TRAP
Starring: Josh Hartnett, Saleka Shyamalan, Ariel Donaghue
Director: M Night Shyamalan
Rating: 3/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
THE NEW BATCH'S FOCUS SECTORS
AiFlux – renewables, oil and gas
DevisionX – manufacturing
Event Gates – security and manufacturing
Farmdar – agriculture
Farmin – smart cities
Greener Crop – agriculture
Ipera.ai – space digitisation
Lune Technologies – fibre-optics
Monak – delivery
NutzenTech – environment
Nybl – machine learning
Occicor – shelf management
Olymon Solutions – smart automation
Pivony – user-generated data
PowerDev – energy big data
Sav – finance
Searover – renewables
Swftbox – delivery
Trade Capital Partners – FinTech
Valorafutbol – sports and entertainment
Workfam – employee engagement
Our family matters legal consultant
Name: Hassan Mohsen Elhais
Position: legal consultant with Al Rowaad Advocates and Legal Consultants.
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Lamsa
Founder: Badr Ward
Launched: 2014
Employees: 60
Based: Abu Dhabi
Sector: EdTech
Funding to date: $15 million
UAE%20v%20West%20Indies
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What went into the film
25 visual effects (VFX) studios
2,150 VFX shots in a film with 2,500 shots
1,000 VFX artists
3,000 technicians
10 Concept artists, 25 3D designers
New sound technology, named 4D SRL
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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COMPANY PROFILE
Founders: Sebastian Stefan, Sebastian Morar and Claudia Pacurar
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2014
Number of employees: 36
Sector: Logistics
Raised: $2.5 million
Investors: DP World, Prime Venture Partners and family offices in Saudi Arabia and the UAE
Company%20Profile
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Joker: Folie a Deux
Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Lady Gaga, Brendan Gleeson
Director: Todd Phillips
Rating: 2/5
How Islam's view of posthumous transplant surgery changed
Transplants from the deceased have been carried out in hospitals across the globe for decades, but in some countries in the Middle East, including the UAE, the practise was banned until relatively recently.
Opinion has been divided as to whether organ donations from a deceased person is permissible in Islam.
The body is viewed as sacred, during and after death, thus prohibiting cremation and tattoos.
One school of thought viewed the removal of organs after death as equally impermissible.
That view has largely changed, and among scholars and indeed many in society, to be seen as permissible to save another life.
Cricket World Cup League 2
UAE squad
Rahul Chopra (captain), Aayan Afzal Khan, Ali Naseer, Aryansh Sharma, Basil Hameed, Dhruv Parashar, Junaid Siddique, Muhammad Farooq, Muhammad Jawadullah, Muhammad Waseem, Omid Rahman, Rahul Bhatia, Tanish Suri, Vishnu Sukumaran, Vriitya Aravind
Fixtures
Friday, November 1 – Oman v UAE
Sunday, November 3 – UAE v Netherlands
Thursday, November 7 – UAE v Oman
Saturday, November 9 – Netherlands v UAE
How to protect yourself when air quality drops
Install an air filter in your home.
Close your windows and turn on the AC.
Shower or bath after being outside.
Wear a face mask.
Stay indoors when conditions are particularly poor.
If driving, turn your engine off when stationary.
