Suppressing Freedoms: Blade Nzimande not fit to be higher education minister

The Democratic Alliance (DA) is of the view that our higher education system would be better off without Dr Blade Nzimande. He should go and go now. He is a menace to freedom and democracy. He is not an education minister serving the nation but rather a commissar throwing his weight around.

It is something of a political obscenity that a minister responsible for higher education supports the gagging of the media. Dr Blade Nzimande’s support for the idea of a media tribunal is as authoritarian as is his instruction to universities to teach courses in support of the ANC’s so-called “developmental state”.

It has not dawned on (the late) Harry Gwala protégé that newspapers are accountable to their readers. Readers decide which newspapers to buy, read and believe. Readers make up their own minds what is credible. Nzimande has no respect for an individual’s judgment because he has no respect for individuals.

It has not dawned on this humorless paragon of higher education that his job is to support and encourage the education of students to explore ideas wherever they may lead rather than to genuflect to the soulless and dull propaganda of the politically correct.

Students will decide which courses to take, books to read, ideas to pursue and conclusions to reach. The extraordinary, presumptuous and pitiful arrogance of the man, to think that he may decide what is good for us and for our children. He should go. We do not need him.

It has not struck the fine doctor that his job is to promote excellence rather than mediocrity for everyone. Then again, his recent utterances in Umsebenzi (20 August 2010 reprinted in Cape Times August 23) exemplify muddled-thinking, ideological clap-trap and the worst order of ungrammatical prose.

Nzimande says: ‘we are also commemorating Ruth First in the midst of a debate about the necessity for a media appeals tribunal in our country.’ A fabulous social scientist and critical thinker, Ruth First must be turning in her grave.

Nzimande continues: ‘print media seeking to intimidate everybody by claiming that the freedom of capitalist print media equals freedom of expression in this country.’ It is Nzimande who intimidates with his high-handed directives and dictatorial invectives. Does the ‘print media’ have a persona to ‘intimidate?”

The Democratic Alliance is of the view that our higher education system would be better off without Dr Blade Nzimande. He should go and go now.