The Daily Discourse

Correctional Services Rehabilitation Program – Is it okay for prisoners to write matric exams? Post their incarceration, who should employ them?

Guest (studio) Singabakho Nxumalo, Spokesperson for the Department of Correctional Services

Should gender roles define how we treat each other in the world and why do we not allow men to be who they are?

Focus: Chikezie Uzuegbunam defines what masculinity means and how we should go about addressing negative issues associated with it. He says we need to remake manhood with a renewed understanding - with empathy, knowledge and a consciousness that allows an exploration of men’s humanity and softer edges.

Guest: Chikezie Uzuegbunam is a doctoral scholar and teaching assistant at the Centre for Film and Media Studies, University of Cape Town

Focus: The issue of child abuse is still a major problem in our country. Some of the cases go unpunished or unresolved due to system failures. Well a newly established organization called the Advocacy Against Child Abuse promises to deal with these loopholes in the system. What is their approach?

Guest: Sonja Carstens – Spokesperson for Advocacy Against Child Abuse

Focus: The issue of whether the church should take part in politics has been argued for many years without real clear answers. The South African Council of Churches has been vocal on political issues in the country which has become normal. Under the apartheid system it was again the church that was vocal in speaking against it while on the other hand the apartheid system was pushed in the name of the church. Our guest says Christianity can be used to redress inequalities in the country, how so?

Guest: Rev Mpho George Molebatsi – From the All Nations Evangelical Missions of Southern Africa

Focus: This past weekend saw one of the biggest Lotto draws which many people may fantasize about especially in these hard economic conditions. There has not been a winner announced though. So we use this opportunity to talk to Ithuba who are running the lottery about how they prepare winners and also a winner about how they managed to keep a straight mind after winning….
Guests: Sandisiwe Gugushe PR Manager for Ithuba

Focus: In December last year, the ANC conference agreed to make amendments to the Constitution and Land Restitution Act that will pave the way for the State to expropriate land without compensation. So this morning we ask, what lessons can South Africa learn from Zimbabwe?

Guest on the line (UK): Dr Admore Tshuma, UK based Social Scientist

The UK’s Economist newspaper has selected South Africa’s Nkosi Sikelel’Afrika as the best national anthem in the world. This is the good news, but what makes it stand out from all the rest? In case you didn’t know, our national anthem is unique; it is the only one in the world to contain verses in five different languages.

Are we coexisting with other races, celebrating our differences or is it every man for himself?

Focus: Nomfundo Mbeki explains why she thinks “the idea that we live in a Rainbow Nation is a pseudo sentiment”. She says in order for us to build a Rainbow Nation, we need to feel equal to each other.

Focus: Post the ANC’s 54th National Congress, we assess the party’s decision to fully decriminalise sex work. The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has voiced its support for the decriminalisation of sex work in South Africa. Their view is that the current legal regime harms the interests of sex workers by denying them their human and constitutional rights to protection as well as preventing access to legal assistance and enjoyment of their labour rights.

Guest: Ms Lulama Nare, Chairperson of the Commission for Gender Equality

Focus: Like they it’s the season to be jolly where everybody is expected to do good deeds and just be loving. We use this opportunity now to talk about the fulfillment in giving. How important is it for all of us to get involved in giving and also create this culture in our everyday lives for the rest of the year? Why do we wait for days like International Nelson Mandela Day or Christmas?