LETTER: Government not above help

From the significant uptake in solar installation by households to the financing of alternative power generation capacity by larger multinationals, we have shown that we are not to be treated as bystanders in our national energy crisis; we are all capable of contributing to finding the answer to our woes. 

Several companies in SA are now focusing on demand-side management, confirming that both the public and private sectors will need to work together to end continuous power outages in our country. 

The use of smart geyser sensors, energy-efficient light bulbs, and innovative solutions to clean our pools offers a sign of the public taking collective responsibility for our own wellbeing, by harnessing the dynamism of the private sector (something many would find to be lacking among parastatals and other government agencies).

Among one of the more popular edicts to come out of this era is the popularisation of Hanlon’s razor; that is, the notion that one should never attribute to malice that which is adequately explained by incompetence.

If our government were a person, it would be flawed (as any of us are), and its actions and inactions should receive the same level of charity we afford others, à la Hanlon’s razor.

But they are also not above help — and that is what is being done; we are helping them to help us. If that does not represent the true spirit of self-help, and the resilience of the SA people, nothing will.   

Mark Allewell
via email

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