Where is the Faith

At first I found it extremely entertaining to read that there are some individuals who describe Pick n Pay’s – very annoying – Stikeez satanic.

To add to this there are those who say the Charlie-Charlie-game is demonic, with some “victims” of Charlie claiming to have seen the small demon that ruined their lives.

My initial reaction to both was to laugh, but then I sat still and my conservative-self questioned my liberal-self: do we really have so little faith, in ourselves and our creator to believe anything and almost everything is satanic?

I got to answer myself that some individuals will find everything satanic if it does not say Amen Hallelujah to their liking.

Stikeez are not the first toy – nor will it be the last – we also had the Pokemon chips and they were not only way more exciting to play with and collect, they were also cheaper. 

Instead of spending R150 or more at the shop to get one Stikeez, for the Pokemon chips you only had to buy a packet of chips for R1,50 and like a surprise bag in it you get a pokemon.

Charlie is also not the first game to be called demonic, and it won’t be the last. Ironically enough 20 years there was also Pinky. Now I can’t recall everything, but vaguely remember some fellow students telling me Pinky is going to kill us and that I was scared for days. Writing this and thinking about it, reminds me of how silly I was to believe those stories. There was no media coverage for Pinky, and if someone actually died because of it, Riaan Cruywagen and Mariette Kruger would surely have told us in those days…

Back to Stikeez and Charlie……

I did some reading on the Charlie-Charlie game and watched a documentary one afternoon, where someone from the KwaZulu-Natal Science Centre gave a really good scientific answer to the game.

It thus makes me wonder why Charlie cannot just be a game. Why can’t Stikeez just be a toy for kids?

Do we really have so little faith, that we only see [make everything] negative?

Considering almost 80% of South Africa’s 54 million citizens are Christians I expected my fellow Christians to have a little more faith than to classify everything that does not look like an angle as satanic with demonic powers.

Metrorail not [really] the bad guy

I have been following the closure of Gouda station like a hawk and those saying Metrorail deliberately made Worcester train not stop at Gouda station is misleading.

The fact is that the Railway Safety Regulator issued PRASA with a Prohibition Directive to suspend station operations at Gouda Station. The most important thing of this closure is that it comes after a complaint by a member of the public was lodged. This shows the power we as commuters do indeed hold.

Metrorail Western Cape received information of the directive less than 60 minutes before that train had to depart Cape Town station. 

I am personally aware that arrangements were made late that evening to ensure that buses and staff be available at the affected station. My concern that buses not move from Gouda to Wellington – as initially communicated – but still stop at the four stations in between was also addressed and implemented the next morning.

 

Prasa has meanwhile reacted stating that work at the station will start in January 2016. 

Now with the recently released Public Protector “Derailed” report on Prasa one should be relieved that there is money in the current financial year to make the improvements. Apart from the health hazard, our concern should be the four/five buses currently used to transport the ± 200 commuters between Gouda and Wellington - that must still stop at the four stations in between.

I reckon Metrorail is unable to sustain the operating of these buses until upgrades at Gouda station is completed in (for arguments sake) April/May 2016. Important to note Metrorail already has a limited number of buses available, plus there is a similar situation playing itself out on the Southern Line, although the effect is much lesser on those commuters.

Monday 7 September buses had to go from Gouda to Vlottenberg/Stellebosch because of the technical problem there and I know Metrorail tried their very best to get it there as soon as possible. But let's face the reality Metrorail will not always be able to recover the service within two hours, as was the case on 7 September.

So how did the RSR get to their decision and why are commuters from Gouda not informed? Well the Railway Safety Inspectors did an inspection on 26 April 2013. As a result of the inspection, an Improvement Directive was issued. The investigation highlighted that:

• The height of the passenger platform in use on the eastern side of Gouda station does not conform to the prescribed passenger platform specifications.
• There are no shelters and ablution facilities to cater for commuters on the passenger/commuter platform.
• Platform surface is in a very poor condition and has big hole which poses a hazard to commuters.
• Fence around the station is in a poor condition and that makes the station vulnerable to people accessing the station without authority or/and valid tickets (trespassers).
• Platform was very dark due to insufficient lighting at the station.

PRASA’s response was that Gouda Station was a Transnet Freight Rail owned station and leased to PRASA and therefore they can do very little to address the threats. According to their agreement Gouda Station is solely used by commuters. 

Although PRASA lease the station, it is PRASA's responsibility to implement and adhere to all safety laws, codes, standards and regulations to ensure safe railway operations.

It is indeed true that Prasa has done very little to address the issues highlighted and therefor the directive was given and is effective immediately. 

The directive will only be revoked when PRASA has satisfactorily demonstrated to the RSR that the immediate threats no longer exist.

In my opinion the Railway Safety Regulator was not fair towards Metrorail – who now looks like the bad guys. Even if Metrorail Western Cape received that directive earlier it would still not be enough notice period to say a station should close. It also raises another thing: when the RSR said immediate effect, what exactly was meant, as this gave Metrorail no time to communicate to commuters.

'n Dag maak jou nie 'n Christen nie

Die tweede helfte van die jaar het onlangs begin en almal gaan nou begin voorberei vir Kersfees, maar nou loop gerugte dat diè se dae ook getel is. Dit is egter nie die eerste keer dat daar gerugte is van pogings om Kersfees en Paasfees te skrap nie. Hierdie is al sedert die vroeë 2000’s ’n besprekingspunt en die onlangse blik wurms is oopgemaak sonder die nodige navorsing – en indien dit wel gedoen is, is dit nie gedeel nie.
Die belangrikste om te weet is dat daar tans geen poging deur die regering is om Christelike vakansiedae of van dit te skrap nie.
Die gerugte kom na aanleiding van ’n besprekingsdokument deur die Suid-Afrikaanse regshervormingskommissie aan die departement van binnelandse sake. Dit is egter belangrik om eers te verstaan dat die kommissie se taak is om die Suid-Afrikaanse grondwet te hersien deur wetgewing of dele van wetgewing te identifiseer en aan te beveel wat geskrap of gewysig moet word, wat strydig is met die gelykheidsbepaling in die Grondwet, wat verouderd of oortollig is.
Dis belangrik om te weet dat die kommissie geen magte het om wetgewing te verander nie, daarvoor het ons die wetgewers met hul eie prosesse.
Die wet op openbare vakansiedae word op bladsy 56 van die besprekingsdokument vir algemene inligting en insette bespreek en die kommissie beveel aan “dat aangesien daar ’n element van ongelyke behandeling is, moet die afdeling hersien word. Daar word ook voorgestel dat òf hierdie dae word hersien, òf gelyke gewig word gegee aan geestelike vakansies van ander gelowe.”
Iets wat ons dalk gou vergeet is dat die Christelike geloof in die twaalf bestaande openbare vakansiedae ingesluit is en sluit nie geestelike dae van onder andere die Moslem, Joodse, Bahá’í en ander gelowe van mede Suid-Afrikaners in nie.
Na my beskeie mening is ons openbare vakansiedae vir ’n demokrasie dus baie ongelyk en diskrimineer ons indirek teenoor ons bure, vriende en familie wat ’n ander geloof as ek dien.
Ek is ’n Christen, wat volgens streng konserwatiewe geestelike waardes groot gemaak is, tog as Christen, wat die woord van liefde versprei en glo in gelykheid, ondersteun ek die hersiening ten volle.
Dit was nie nodig om te gaan sit en dink wat as die Christelike vakansiedae tans op die kalender ’n ander geloof was, hoe sou ek as Christen voel en sou ek dit wou verander?
Ek wonder wel hoeveel van diegene wat ontsteld is, die afgelope ses maande elke week in ’n kerk was of hoeveel is net in ’n kerkdiens op Goeie Vrydag en Kersfees?
So, skrap ons Kersfees en Paasfees, of voeg ons Eid Al-Fitr, Eid Al-Adha, Yom Kippur, Makar Sankranti en ’n paar ander by die twaalf dae wat ons het?
Ek sal ten gunste stem van ’n vakansiedag vir Rastafariërs, Jode, Muslim en talle ander gelowe, maar wanneer ons besluit oor die vakansiedae is dit belangrik om onsself te herinner hoe meer vakansiedae, hoe minder produksiedae om by te dra tot die ekonomie van die land – wat kan en gaan lei tot erger nagevolge. Moet ekonomiese groei nie liefs ons doel wees, om ons land te verbeter, geleenthede te skep vir ons nageslag, pleks van meer vakansiedae te maak?
Hetsy Paasfees, Kersfees, Eid Al-Fitr, Yom Kippur of enige ander geestelike dag nou in die Wet op Openbare Vakansiedae verskyn al dan nie, beteken ook tog nie jy het nie die reg om dit te vier nie.
Om te preek vind tog sekerlik nie net tussen die vier mure van ’n gebou op ’n Sondag, Goeie Vrydag en Kersfees plaas nie, maar elke dag en nie net in woord nie, maar ook in daad?
Die wat ernstig is oor geloof sal getrou wees aan hul waardes en dit saam met hul geloof uitleef – ongeag ’n openbare vakansiedag.
En ja, 79% van Suid-Afrikaners is Christene, maar om die dag as openbare vakansiedag of nie te hê, maak jou nie minder of meer van ’n Christen nie.

• Oorspronklike het in Paarl Post van Donderdag 30 Julie 2015 verskyn as 'n Dag maak jou nie 'n Christen nie.

Faith needs no Public Holiday

The second half of the year has just began and it is downhill towards the festive season, but now rumours started to emerge that Christmas and Easter days might be numbered. It is not the first time such rumours have been circulating, and honestly it will not be the last. This has been a discussion point or attempted discussion point since the early 2000’s (in the past there were also protest against this) and the recent opening of a can of worms is all thanks to The Herald in May 2015 – subsequently leading to a few other media outlets jumping on the bandwagon – without doing the necessary research and if they did, it was not included in the article.

So let’s state the fact that there is currently no attempt by the current government to scrap Christian holidays or even some of it.

The latest rumour comes following a discussion document by the South African Law Reform Commission to the department of Homes Affairs.

It is however important to know that the SALRC is tasked with revising the South African statute book by identifying and recommending for repeal or amendment of legislation or provisions in legislation that are inconsistent with the equality clause in the Constitution, are redundant or obsolete. Also note that the commission has no power to change any legislation, for that we have the legislator.

The SALRC did release a discussion paper that is administered by the department of Home Affairs, for general information and comment and part of the document – on page 56 – the Public Holiday’s Act is discussed and the commission recommends to the department “that since there is an element of unequal treatment, the section should be reviewed. It is also suggested that either these holidays be reviewed or that equal weight be given to religious holiday of other faiths”.

With the above said I find it mind boggling anyone would come to the conclusion that there is a recommendation that religious holidays be cancelled.

Something we so easily forget is that only the Christian religion is included in the twelve existing public holidays, excluding important religious days for the Islam-, Jewish-, Bahá’í- and other religions.

Apart from the twelve days, the Public Holidays Act (Act No 36 of 1994) determines that whenever any public holiday falls on a Sunday, the following Monday will be a public holiday. From time to time the President of the Republic is generous and we get once-off Public Holidays like with a General election and on:

• 31 December 1999 and 2 and 3 January 2000,

• 2 May 2008

• 27 December 2008

Taking all the above into consideration, then yes our Public Holidays are unequal for a democracy and we discriminating against our neighbours, friends and family who serve a different religion.

I am a Christian, having and still continue to play an active role within my church and grew up with strict conservative religious values. Thus as a Christian who spread the word of love and believe that we are all equal I fully support the call for the review of our public holidays as per the Public Holiday’s Act of 1994.

Before I’m stoned for being a Christian turning on my Christian values – take a second and think what if those current Christian holiday’s on the calendar were any other religion, how would you as Christian have felt and how badly would you have wanted it to change?

How many of those who appear upset over this, attended church every single Sunday the past six months, or are they amongst those who only attend church on Good Friday and Christmas?

Yes 79% of South Africans are Christians but a day being declared a public holiday or not does not make you more or less a Christian.

Whether Easter and/or Christmas appear on the Public Holidays Act does not mean you will not have the right to celebrate it.

I am a Christian who believes preaching should not just happen between the four walls of a building on a Sunday, Good Friday and Christmas morning, but preaching is everyday with not only our words but our actions.

A true Christian is one who remains committed to his/her values and live their faith – irrespective of public holidays.

A critics delay?

I recently took a great interest in a newspaper announcing they would be monitoring Metrorail trains in the Western Cape – interest was not only because I have build and still attempt to build a good relationship with Metrorail, but also because I’ve been criticizing them for about four years.

Commuters were advised to use #metroraildiaries on Twitter, so I scanned this hashtag and there were not even five tweets from commuters and less than 10 from three of the journalist who took a train - (excluding mine). What I find disturbing is that there was the assumption if “we take a train, we would understand and can share the frustration of commuters”. Being a commuter myself I can say it takes more than a 30 minute journey to understand the frustration of commuters.

If my media colleagues regularly took a train during peak time, they would understand the real frustration of commuters. Had they engaged with Metrorail Western Cape they would also have learned why trains are delayed and what the different delays mean.

From the article, I have to raise the following:

• They mention security preventing to take photos: so why not ask where the station manager or supervisor is and as journalists why not inform Metrorail’s Communications manager about this?
• They mention announcements were made, but fail to mention what the announcements stated on why trains were delayed.
• One of the journalist mentions about being surprised a train is on time: how do you know the train is on time and why not happy that it is on time?
• Another journalist took a train after 8am, now even though Metrorail’s morning peak ends at 9, any regular commuter knows majority of people take train between 05:30 and 07:45 and it is very rare that you will have an overcrowded train after 8.

What I find sad about the article is that there was despite a “my experience”, no research but a one-sided story. 

They mention no attempt to make contact with Metrorail, nor did they test @CapeTownTrains on Twitter, notice updates is posted on Facebook and they fail to mention thousands of commuters are registered for Metrorail’s SMS system.

Metrorail’s service is far from perfect, but is it not better to become a stakeholder that criticize as oppose to a critic that adds to the delay?

Metrorail gets revenue and commuters?

Metrorail on 12 June 2015 decided to drop the bombshell and announce their intention to increase ticket prices from July 1^st. 

Now this came as no surprise to me as I was engaged prior to this announcement but I also knew last year it was coming – in fact I’ve known for the past 5 years.

Before I try and become harsh on Metrorail for the increase, let me first try and be objective and share the following that comparing to 2014 there has been some of improvement: 

• Speed restrictions that were imposed early last year have been lifted at most of the sections.
• Morning and even evening cancelled trains came down from 14/15 at a time to three/four (not ideal but it is an improvement).
• Security is my biggest concern and with Metrorail not immune to social challenges, there has been an increase in guards on trains – again not what it should be but an improvement. The challenge now is to get the railway police back on our trains, preferably times and areas most vulnerable.

Why the increase:

Besides the obvious fact that everything is increasing, Metrorail for three/four years had no fare increase and this led to a 16% increase when they eventually had to implement one (something I as a commuter would not want again). The then management made a commitment towards commuters to never place such a huge burden on them again, but to do that annual increases are needed.

Maybe worth mentioning that it is Prasa and not Metrorail who decide on fare prices, although Metrorail gives input. Also worth mentioning that following last year’s outcry, for the first time, the minister of transport this year wanted to see the fare increases and Prasa had to justify them – she is yet to sign off on them.

 

Metrorail is like any other business and a household, who has to make money to survive. With the announcement the Regional Manager stated they taking a pro-poor pricing strategy for weekly and monthly ticket prices. This means Metro-users (third class) pay for only 6.5 trips per week but have the option of 14 trips including weekends. Metro monthly tickets are priced at 3.1 weeks travel but your ticket allows you to travel for 4weeks.

Considering old assets beyond their design life, obsolete technology and extensive open system vulnerable to vandalism, land invasion, service protests and vagrancy that contribute to the maintenance burden – yes an increase is needed.

Expectation:

Ideally I would have wanted the transport minister to ask Treasury and public enterprises for a bigger cut of the pie and joint venture to fast-track the improvement of our old rail infrastructure.

Seeing as train tracks beyond Stikland and most of the tracks beyond Kuilsriver on the Northern Line belong to Transnet, I would also expect the transport and public enterprises ministers to be bold enough to transfer those tracks to Metrorail to ensure better service, as their hands are currently tied. 

Having said that too many freight trains operate in commuter peak-time and even though goods trains bring in more revenue than commuter trains, the two ministers can make a decision for freight trains not to operate in commuter peak – as the past year have seen too many of them fail in section leading to commuter trains being delayed for up to three hours.

What Metrorail cannot ignore:

Metrorail’s biggest challenge remains customer service communication – I comfort myself with the fact that the Regional Manager not only understands the importance of this but also the frustration of thousands of commuters and is trying his best to make sure this is being addressed. 

It is also comforting to know the Regional Manager occasionally takes a train “undercover” and addresses issues like no announcements, electronic boards that are off, etc.

Metrorail has stated the fare increase is unavoidable. Let’s be honest so is train cancellations, delays, vandalism, defective tracks, trains failing in-section (I do hope and pray though no derailment) the next few months, and thus should proactive communication also be unavoidable.

It is highly unlikely that there will be no increase, so it should be highly unlikely there should be an hour with no customer communication (should be comforting for the tech savvy to know we still have GoMetro and @CapeTownTrains to keep us informed - last mentioned made some major improvements past few months and should be deployed to assist the struggling Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal regions)

Metrorail is going to get their revenue (with the increase), so now us commuters should get better more proactive customer service communication.

Ouma se drie lesse

Liewe Ouma

Dit is vandag (12 Junie 2015) presies twee jaar dat God besluit het jy is ‘n sonneblom wat hy meer nodig het in sy tuin. Ek het lank gedink daaroor om Ouma graf te besoek, maar voel dit is ‘n plek waar ons blomme kan gaan opsit – as ek Ouma mis kyk ek na ons foto saam op my bedkassie en as ek met Ouma wil praat kan ek bid – want ek dra Ouma en al die herinerringe in my hart.

Die vermisting is groot en daar is soms nog trane. So nou en dan mik ek om te bel en dan besef ek daar gaan niemand antwoord nie. As ons vandag moes praat sou Ouma soos altyd vra hoe gaan dit met al die kleinkinders en ek sou moes jok en sê hulle is okay. Ek dink nie ons is almal okay nie, maar Ouma het my geleer en gevra om biddend te bly en soos Ouma vertrou ek op Liewe Jesus.

Ek het onlangs ou foto’s gekyk en daar was een van my en my susters met altwee ons (nou wyle) ouma’s. Dit is die enigste foto in sy soort waarvan ek weer en dit nogal my sesde verjaarsdag. Ek dink soms aan die ou sorglose dae en het ook agtergekom ek sê deesdae meer gereeld my Ouma het altyd gesê of my Ouma het my geleer...

Ek dink baie aan wat Ouma my daai laaste oggend gevra het en voel ek misluk soms, maar herinner my daaraan dat gebed dra krag en dat ek moet vertrou in God met dit wat ek vra.

‘n Jaar gelede het ek onthou hoe Ouma my eenkeer genoem het hoekom gaan studeer ek nie teologie nie en by ‘n ander geleentheid het Ouma my herineer om ‘n boodskap oor te dra en ander te motiveer hoef jy soms nie ‘n dominee te wees nie. Ek weet Ouma is gelukkig dat ek my skepper ken en dat ek altyd onthou my hulp kom van die Here wat hemel en aarde gemaak het.

Vandag soos ek weer rou oor daardie dag, twee jaar gelede, klou ek aan die drie lesse wat Ouma my geleer het

(1) Psalm 23 v.1 “Die Here is my Herder, ek kom niks kort nie”

(2) Waardes en beginsels is belangrik en geld kan dit nie koop nie. Bly by dit en glo en vertrou

(3) Gebed dra krag.