By Nathaniel Lee
I was horrified to read about the brutal assault on Comrades legend and 1991 winner Nick Bester near his home in Pretoria as he was training.
The ferocity of his assault is blood-curdling. He was “beaten with rocks, dragged up a hill and beaten again with rocks and tied up and left for dead”. Bester is in ICU.
What kind of twisted minds do something like that?
As our country stares corruption in the face, we are once again reminded of another scourge that bedevils it.
Violent crime is out of control, with violent criminals ruling the roost.
The public is fast losing patience with the police’s inability to arrest criminals. The recent killing of Eldorado Park teenager Nathaniel Julies at the hands of the police serves as a dangerous recipe for vigilantism when citizens lose all confidence in the police.
The rule of law must be intensified, and criminals must be made aware that they will be arrested and punished. South Africans cannot continue to live as prisoners in their own homes.
It has to start with the government setting an example by arresting corrupt government officials. Criminals are emboldened when those who are supposed to govern commit crimes and get away with it. The police must also get their house in order. The administrative architecture of police operations should also be refined to avoid the bungles that might let criminals off the hook. Proper investigations should ensure that perpetrators are successfully prosecuted and sent away.
The effects of crime on our society are manifold including personal, psychological and economic.
Our homes should also not serve as sanctuaries for criminals. Parents of criminals should not aid and abet crime by protecting their children.
Fathers, in particular, should show love and “daddycation” to their children. Children who grow up under unfavourable circumstances become more susceptible to influences that might lead them astray.
The market for criminals to trade their ill-gotten wares must be eradicated. This can happen if society desists from buying stolen property.
Wishing a speedy and full recovery to Nick Bester and hoping he will bounce back and do what he does best.
The Star