The level of debate in SA is often depressingly binary. Nuance is entirely stripped out as people seek to define any particular event through a political prism. In this polarised situation, people are seen as squeaky clean or devilishly evil.
So, in this context in which truth is liable to be hijacked for whoever can shout the loudest, it is comforting to know that people like Reserve Bank governor Lesetja Kganyago can see through the red mist. This week, Kganyago berated those who are "indulging in populism, instead of making pragmatic choices".
In particular, he was speaking of "the amount of time we have squandered discussing Reserve Bank nationalisation".
As Kganyago pointed out, no-one has been able to explain how SA would benefit from doing this. Instead, it has become one of the numerous red herrings trotted out to divert attention from the real issues.
Rather, said Kganyago, we need to talk about important matters, such as luring investment and dealing with unemployment, which hit 27.5% this week — 37.3% if you include discouraged jobseekers.
That is something that needs attention, along with parlous education standards. Not a half-baked squabble over shares with more symbolic value than anything else.
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