South Africa’s arms deal scandal, its two disgraced former police commissioners, and President Jacob Zuma’s Nkandla renovations are not only cause for concern in the local political arena. They also impact us more detrimentally in that they have done little to boost confidence in the country, especially among foreign firms looking to do business here. 

With South Africa in turmoil and in the grip of unrest on many fronts, from wildcat strikes in the mining sector and violent protest in the farming industry of the Boland to service delivery protest aimed at local authorities all over the place, analysts are searching frantically to identify the underlying reasons. One that pops up regularly is the frustrated expectations of the majority of the population.

The Springboks, and their fans, will be relieved after they achieved their objective to end the Northern Hemisphere tour unbeaten. The 16-15 win was neither pretty nor emphatic. England came ever so close to end the Boks’ unbeaten run against them since 2006. 

It started as widespread amorphous service delivery protests but now it has become  more a focused, targeted and better organised action. There was the wave of illegal strikes in the mining industry after Marikana. Then, just as things seemed to subside in the mining sector, South Africa was rocked by a second wave of violent wildcat strikes by farm workers starting at De Doorns, in the Western Cape. Is the country’s own version of the 'Arab spring' already in progress? 

The violent protests and strikes that have become endemic in countries across the European Union (EU) are a sign of things to come as the news sinks in that the second economic recession since the 2009 financial crisis is now a reality. A popular backlash is building against austerity measures resulting in cuts to public services and what amounts to internal devaluation policies.

In Canada they have a proverb describing their relationship with the United States: “How do you sleep with an elephant? Carefully.”  Much the same can be said about South Africa’s neighbours in southern Africa. Especially recently. 

Two of the most keenly anticipated matches will grip the imagination of domestic soccer fans within the next fortnight. Durban’s Moses Mabhida Stadium will host the 2012/13 Telkom Knockout final between Mamelodi Sundowns and Bloemfontein Celtic on Saturday. A week later, it is the Soweto derby between the Absa Premier League log leaders, Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates. 

Faf du Plessis’s rescue act helped South Africa to draw a test they were destined to lose. This might go down in the annals of South African cricket as one of the best defensive centuries of all time by a Protea batsman. He also made history as the first South African batsmen to score both a half and a full century on his test debut.