A tsunami always leads to havoc, destruction, and waste that cannot be worked away for a very long time. And never to be verbalised, in any way, to be righteous if human-created.
Tsunamis leave psychological and physical pain through layers of damaged existence. For all citizens. Children, vulnerable human beings. Moral culpability. Prof Chris Malikane strongly propagates such a tsunami. He rightfully propagates radical economic transformation.
A large part of society, black, brown, white, deem this extremely important so that a historic biased system and the consequences can be rectified. No shadow boxing. Doing so to create a more equitable society, a healed country, so that a better, more humane future can take shape. But his specific approach to this important issue as the adviser to the Minister of Finance is very sad, shocking and very dangerous.
One would expect an academic to be rational to the bone, logical, to pursue this important issue in a balanced way, to assess where such moral societies do exist, how they came about, how they function, what is the fabric of such societal life like, et cetera.
Also, the other side of the coin, how did simplistic economic change come about in other countries that led to disaster and decades of ruin and disaster. A true academic, and an adviser to the government, would take on these kinds of issues scientifically, in a 21st century context with all its complex entwinements and will never behave like an impulsive, or compulsive, politician or an ardent-hearted revolutionary agent.
A revolutionary may be righteous at heart, but not so with a myopic and simplistic perspective that does not consider and apply a wise, balanced and pragmatic hand.
Overpowering politics without considering economic consequences will only unleash boundless destructive forces. We are living in an interconnected world and a simplistic approach will cause severe chaos and real people will get swept along. Not only the deemed "culprits". This will never be responsible and it is at heart immoral.
To subtly suggest the taking up of arms to rectify the injustices of the past, (if all else fails, said as insurance) makes such a propagator crossing the border between good and evil. So doing he will find himself joined on the shamed side with the very perpetrators who had caused havoc through the ages.
History, in time, will display all destroyers of human lives on canvasses that cannot be hidden and that will show unredeemable shame forever.
Prof Chris Malikane, your heart may be pure, humane, I sincerely wish that to be so, but you are not using your full capacity as an academic thinker. You are proposing a cheap game of musical chairs with your approach, Russian Roulette, and not moral righteousness.
Furthermore, you are dancing to very dangerous tunes of destruction and singing a provocative revolutionary song to reeling, hopeless and angry people. It has happened before. The sadness of human-invented tsunamis. The shrewd tuning of issues to get to the ears and hearts of frustrated victims in an unjust society.
But to even suggest the option to kill other people as such, takes you to a place where moral politicians, leaders, humans, should never be seen to linger.
Van der Walt is an estate agent and has degrees in philosophy and theology