This is the view of Professor Kwandiwe Kondlo from Wits University’s School of Governance who delivered a public lecture hosted by Nelson Mandela University titled 'Robert Sobukwe - Reading the signs of times’ – a philosophical postscript’ last week (25 February 2026).
Kondlo referenced a letter written by the late Sobukwe, leader of the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC), to journalist Benjamin Pogrund, dated 23 November 1966 while Sobukwe was imprisoned on Robben Island, which reads: “The tragedy of our day is the inability of politicians to read the signs of times.”
Sobukwe was referring to the politics of the day in both South Africa and the USA, Kondlo explains.
“He was concerned about the global impact of American politics, and he was concerned about the quality of leadership in the entire national liberation movement in South Africa.
"In particular he was questioning how the national liberation movement could forge within itself a well-rounded leadership, with leaders possessing the moral stature and anticipatory rationale to think, sense and get things done.
“At that time, certain leaders were being bought out of the struggle to join the homeland system and advance separate development. Sobukwe, who had received numerous offers to do the same, was deeply concerned about moral standing of leaders.
“What he said was prophetic, as sixty years later we are once again faced with iterations of both issues today,” says Kondlo. “More than ever, we need a leadership in South Africa that is awake and that cares enough to find the tune in the historical air and read the signs of times – understanding the meaning and demands this brings.
“We see the rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer,” he explains. “Our government and the ANC majority party is aware of the devastation in our communities, and they have solutions on paper for the failing economy, service delivery, education, unemployment, and poverty, but what is lacking is getting things done. There is a knowing-doing gap which has to be closed.”
Vice-Chancellor Professor Sibongile Muthwa, Prof Kwandiwe Kondlo, Pscyhology Professor at Unisa Zethu Cakata, Executive Dean of Education Prof Heloise Sathorar and Education Prof Shervani Pillay, ahead of the Sobukwe lecture.
Kondlo asserts that if Sobukwe was around to lead South Africa now, “we would see more heads rolling as he was not corruptible and he had a deep connection with the people that is lacking today.
"He would have immediately addressed the overwhelming issue of corruption and political appointments throughout the country today. Many of the appointments are not only without the moral stature Sobukwe spoke about, they are also without the requisite skills to govern, effect service delivery or manage infrastructure.”
Through the spate of commissions, including Zondo, Madlanga and the Parliamentary Task Teams, Kondlo says the picture is very clear: “We have lots of people enriching themselves by taking money from the public purse for their own benefit, and they are difficult to arrest as they have resources to evade or challenge the law.”
Kondlo adds that policies intended to empower the people of South Africa are also failing. “Broad-Based Black Economic Empowerment (B-BBEE), for one, needs to be totally reworked as it is not bringing broad-based empowerment.
"What it is doing is touching a few black elite who then pull everything around for themselves and their networks, but it is not filtering down. The President defended it during the SONA but on the whole, it is not working.”
Kondlo emphasises that there is a lot of unhappiness throughout the land about all these issues and more, but the leaders of the majority party just don’t seem to be ‘reading the signs of times’.
“Voting for the ANC out of loyalty is on the decline,” he says. “There will still be people voting out of the fear of losing the small gifts they get from the ANC or the fear of the unknown, but the number of voices critical of the ANC are seriously growing.”
Turning to global politics and the USA today, he says: “The global trend set by Mr Donald Trump is alarming as it encourages right wing protectionism – politically, socially and economically. We are seeing right wing political groupings ascending in the USA and a number of European countries.
"The mood globally is no longer about building openness and democracy; it’s the opposite. It is closing in on freedom of movement and expression, and the politics of mutual respect and sovereignty are going out the window.”
Prof Kondlo adds that South Africa’s global diplomacy needs far more nuance and depth. “South Africa’s position about the USA for example, is highly sensitive and it does not positively serve South Africa to have all sorts of voices, including from Luthuli House, articulating our foreign policy. This should be channelled through the President and the Minister of International Relations; otherwise, it causes confusion and damage to the country.”
Kondlo is deeply concerned that “the beautiful country that is South Africa is almost gone. We see the agony of black women in the rural areas and townships who have to nurse depressed children sitting at home with university degrees and without jobs.
"We see the hopelessness and desperation of the majority of people. It is time for people to return to moral principle and demand ethical leadership. It is time for people to talk and create citizen assemblies who can act for the collective good. In that way we will be paying tribute to the powerful soul of Robert Sobukwe.”