I think that it is right and proper that the minister and Department of Arts and Culture took some time out of their busy schedules and to spend it with a group of black arts journalists on the Blue Train, the flagship of Ramos Rail. To those in the apartheid-aligned media who would once again raise their racist voices in criticism, all I can say is “eat Wimpy burgers”.
It is the duty of the state to provide opportunities to individuals from historically disadvantaged communities, so that all — okay, maybe not all, but at least their representatives and a few chosen others — shall share in the country’s gravy. And if government ministers and officials enjoy themselves in the process, that’s simply good planning. So what if those that are being affirmatively acted upon happen to be journalists?
For all the media carping about opportunistic politicians undermining democracy and crossing the floor to black, gold and greener pastures, not a few media people have crossed the floor from the fourth estate to the state’s departments of spin.
Some have done so physically, but really, it would be more useful if many simply crossed the floor in their hearts and minds. That way, the government would have its Trojan horses in the white-owned and/or controlled media.
It was black journalists in the black media that exposed the heinous crimes alleged by the black exco of the National Arts Council (NAC) against the black senior management and the black former chairperson of the NAC. White hacks were deliberately left out of the leaking loop at the time.
Then, probably out of reactionary spite, the anti-transformation white media reported that the disciplinary hearing, presided over by a respected black advocate, had cleared the NAC’s black management of all but one of the charges against them, and recommended that they be given warning letters.
Heeding the advice of their white lawyers however, the black-led NAC board decided not to renew the contract of the black woman CEO and to end the contract of a black contractee against whom all charges had been withdrawn.
The pro-white capital media then reported on how, despite numerous representations to the minister and the department who bear political responsibility for the NAC, nothing has been done to restore the practice — let alone the image — of good governance there. Which is understandable since, after all, it is only the black artist lackeys of white arts organisations that are really being disadvantaged as a result.
Now the neo-colonial media — no doubt in cahoots with the Blair regime — have reported that the apartheid-era parliamentary accountants made a presentation to the portfolio committee on arts and culture, in which they indicated that only five of 26 cultural institutions for which the department is responsible, were given a clean bill of financial health.
The endangered (and therefore highly protected?) NAC apparently was the one public entity that failed even to submit audited statements to the portfolio committee. (Maybe it is still trying to find the slips for its expenses at the Grahamstown festival.)
The desires of the arts sector — still stuck in third class on the blues train — are reasonably simple.
Virtuoso displays of ministerial intelligence or knowledge may be impressive, but even more impressive would be consistent and effectively implemented policies, fair and efficient decision-making and delivery of services, transparent governance and sound management of publicly funded institutions, consultation on issues that directly affect artists, improvement in their working conditions and protection of their rights.
For the department though, these might be too much like hard work. It is much easier to polarise the sector along racial lines, play off black journalists and artists against their white counterparts, and to not have to deliver on substance by engaging in rolling mass spin. If the department actually delivered on its mandate, who knows, even the reactionary, racist, anti-transformation and white-biased media might acknowledge and applaud its work.
But then, what rationale would there be to charter the Blue Train for a Friday night opskop at the taxpayers’ expense?