World's great economies were built after world's disasters, wars etc... The world is in distress right now, Africa can not keep on rebuilding other economies by buying overseas.
#Africa#letsnotfailagain
THREAD
Dear Minister @Khu_Ntshavheni , as a communications student whose interest lies in Information Sovereignty and Geopolitical Power, it is truly concerning hearing your diagnosis if the information warfare. Your words indicate that the state of South Africa will continue to be penetrable and vulnerable precisely because it has not done the work of understanding Disinformation. Disinformation is not a legal problem. It is primarily an information ecosystem problem. The first line of defence is not banning falsehoods. You can't. The first response is to capacitate the state and modernize your communication architecture so that the state is faster than the lie.
Governments that communicate quickly, transparently and consistently create less space for disinformation to flourish. During crises, silence allows false narratives to become "truth."
The state is often reactionary rather than proactive. You cannot be proactive if you don't modernize GCIS so that it has the capacity to do risk analysis and craft rapid response units. GCIS has a moribund feel to it, way behind the times. These long press statements and briefings are so archaic. You need simplified , even engaging, gamefied interactive spaces with government data. Strategic narrative planning around your key priorities, beginning early in the year and involving ALL spokespersons and strategists pulled together in compulsory convenings, every quarter. You need an technologically savvy tracking mechanism that helps you identify communication weakness and which communities are vulnerable to disinformation on a particular government initiative or policy. You then reach them quickly and at their level.
Sure, tech companies can help to democratise the algorithm because disinformation is spread via manipulation of the algorithm. But you need a proper landscape analysis so that your intervention is commensurate with the scale of the threat.
You need to invest in public information literacy and craft a national resilience plan against information warfare. "We will not tolerate....you will bear the consequences...." is not going to help you. It will drive bot-level defiance. You cannot simply legislate against "fake news" because the crisis is not just the content but the networks themselves. You have an ecosystem problem here.
You have also made a rudimentary mistake: conflating concepts. Modern scholarship distinguishes between disinformation, misinformation and malinformation. It is important to understand the distinctions because it will help you confine yourself to what is legally possible. Threatening "fake news" broadly risks sweeping protected speech, mistakes, satire and wrong information into the same category.
I say this as someone who shares your concern about harmful disinformation and misinformation. I also lament poor journalism that also fuels this. I am a fanatic on this issue and I care deeply about the harm that has been done to South Africa. It has been very hurtful politically and personally. We are not disagreeing here.
All I am challenging your government to do is to understand the pillars of modern disinformation and be theoretically and forensically accurate in crafting solutions. Solutions that are not deliberate and have no depth, will fail.
There was a whole community that was displaced by Zama-Zamas, elderly people were sleeping on the floor in the police station. Not even one of those huge ass trucks went there to stabilise the situation but today they had them in numbers. Okay man 👍🏾.
If you listen to this woman and nothing in you changes after watching this video, you must know that you're one of the people that stand for nothing in this country!
A Malawian illegal foreigner says that other Africans tell each other South Africa's laws are lax, which is why most of them come here, they get to do whatever they want. He says he's been caught at the border many times, yet he's still a free man. 😳😳😳
A 12-year-old boy, Bandile Makhubo, has apparently been kidnapped from his grandmother’s home in Palm Springs, Evaton.
The incident took place on Saturday when four men travelling in a white Toyota Quantum kidnapped him.
Evaton police have launched an urgent search and are appealing to anyone with information to contact SAPS Evaton on 016 596 1203.
I remember this day clearly when @FloMasebe stood and presented her (our) case. Today, that ceiling we were trying to break through has now become the floor of another level. The fight continues and will be won. Thank you Khadzi, and to other thespians who continue to sacrifice their all for the benefit of South African artists.
I am a young, female entrepreneur who does carpentry, furniture and construction. For the past 2years I have been applying to the @sedfa_dsbd for finance and asset assistance. Each time met with rejection that there’s not enough budget. I was surprised to see a R600m budget appear out of nowhere for the June 30 protest. Whilst I understand the importance of national stability, I’m saddened that an entrepreneur who wants to create job opportunities doesn’t get supported. People who genuinely want to build South Africa are not being supported. I feel let down by my government. My vote feels misplaced. There is no transparency from @Stellarated and her cabinet about allocations. What will it take for you to hear our cries @CyrilRamaphosa ? I’m not looking for a hand out. I’m looking for a hand up. Legitimate support. I feel so let down 💔. @MYANC@eNCA@SABCNews@JacintaNgobese@MbalulaFikile@PMashatile
Guys, as ActionSA in Gauteng, we can reveal that the Department of Economic Development does not know of any Spaza Shop owner in Gauteng who has been funded from the R500 million Spaza Shop Support Fund.
This means either no one was funded in Gauteng, or the Department of Small Business Development does not want to share information with the provincial government.