Ruminations on Barnacles and Being Unfit for Public Office

Unfit for public office

Aweh dearly beloved fellow ruminants & groupies on day 92 of no lockdown.

Period as an ivory tower academic 98 days

There was a time when leaders who were unfit for public office either resigned or were forced out and left in disgrace like Richard Nixon. Remember David Cameron resigning after losing the Brexit referendum, admitting defeat, and leaving office voluntarily in a dignified fashion. We now appear to be living in a time where being unfit for public office appears to be a desirable characteristic in selecting political leaders. One of the defining characteristics of unfit leaders is that they are like barnacles and cling tenaciously to power. Barnacles can be pried off with a variety of tools, but they often cause significant damage to the shell.

In South Africa, it was abundantly clear that Jacob Zuma was unfit for public office long before he became president. Imagine, if you will, a ten-point scale with extremely fit to govern being a one and not fit to govern a picnic as a ten. Consider a five as being barely fit to govern. People scoring more than a five are not fit to govern. Zuma merits a ten. He stole the sandwiches and drank all the beer at the picnic. During his 9-year tenure, he became a large barnacle on the fabric of South African society, and he spawned a large barnacle infestation of unfit leaders. Although he was eventually pried from his job leaving behind significant damage to South Africa many of his barnacles remained and are still in the government today and clinging to power fiercely. Although the Zondo commission lays bare the destruction wrought by his regime it is doubtful that many of the remaining barnacles in South Africa will be easily pried from power by the existing government. Only regime change might accomplish that and even then, prying off the barnacles is likely to cause significant further damage to South African society.

It is also becoming clear that Zuma’s successor Cyril Ramaphosa is also unfit for public office. The bizarre couchgate saga now unfolding is just the latest scandal revealing severe flaws in the judgement and character of South Africa’s president although he only merits a seven or eight on the fit to govern scale. For those of you not living in South Africa, the couchgate saga has been compared to a Coen brothers movie in terms of its bizarre elements. South Africa’s president illegally stored a large amount of cash in US dollars hidden in the couch of his farmhouse. The amount is disputed but it is in excess of $1 million. The staff at the house discovered the cash and orchestrated a robbery. The crime was not reported, and the perpetrators were discreetly hunted down, confronted, and ultimately paid off to keep shtum.

In an ideal world, this would lead to Cyril resigning and someone fit to govern being appointed. The problem is that his successor and deputy president, David Mabuza, merits a ten on the unfit to govern scale. Better the devil you know.

Choosing leaders who are not fit to govern is not a South African phenomenon. Boris Johnson, the UK prime minister merits an eight on the fitness scale and lurches from scandal to scandal. This is not a humble man whose main interest is serving the people who elected him. Just this week the scandals piled up to such an extent that his colleagues in the Tory party started resigning en-masse forcing him to resign. He did not leave willingly, and a barnacle has been pried from power with significant damage left behind.  

Then of course there is Donald Trump who fully merits a ten on the fitness to govern scale. I know there are many who will disagree with me and who worship this man, but I stick to my ten. He was described as a vulgarian by the Economist and as a carnival barking clown by David Bloomberg after engaging in schoolboy bullying insults about his height. I cannot improve on these descriptions.

Not knowing when to leave graciously and clinging to power like a barnacle is one of the defining characteristics of a ten. Look no further than the recent congressional hearings into the January 2021 Capitol attack. And yet, don’t count him out for winning the next presidential election in 2024. I will confess that while Trump was president, he provided a macabre and disturbing form of entertainment as he behaved inappropriately and bullied and insulted everyone on a daily basis. You can ignore vulgar celebrities like the Kardashians but when the president of the United States becomes a coarse reality TV star you cannot ignore it.

Is Joe Biden fit to govern? My score for him on the fit to govern scale is a seven. He is infinitely better than Trump, but his best days are long behind him. Seventy-nine is much too old to be the president of the United States. There is a very good reason that most organisations have mandatory retirement ages. Senior leadership roles are extremely demanding and simply not suited to someone who is nearly eighty. In this modern age where every public moment is recorded, it is painful and undignified to watch this old man trying to do his best rather than enjoying a well-deserved retirement. I am eighteen years younger than him, and I am very conscious of the fact that I have passed my best before date and am rapidly approaching my put-out-to-pasture date. This is a simple and unavoidable consequence of the ageing process. There is a time to step back.

There are many other political leaders who are unfit for public office and Jair Bolsonaro of Brazil and Vladimir Putin of Russia both merit tens. Apart from clinging to power like barnacles one of the other defining characteristics of tens is that they are incredibly divisive. They do the opposite of nation-building, are often xenophobic, annoy the neighbours and fan the flames of hate and division and promote populist and selfish causes.

This then brings me to the painful question of why we choose leaders like this. Our leaders reflect our society, and we appear to be incapable of rejecting narcissistic, populist, and divisive leaders who misbehave. We are the problem. Life is not dull if you choose a ten as your leader but although there may be regular entertainment it comes at a heavy price.

Thank you for all the ideas and comments. I really appreciate them and please keep them coming.

Regards

Bruce