Join the new world

I once had someone ask me how it was I managed to deal with Ryan Dagari, how it was I tolerated him, as that his personality and manner was offensive to the person in question. I couldn’t help but laugh. Ryan has been a figure in South Africa for as long as I can remember. He has always been there, in one form or another. Presidents have gone to him for advice, people have sought out his opinion. And, on the other side of that, people have hated him. He is an honest, opinionated player, and a lot of people resent that. Hell, I’ve even received a verbal beating or two from the guy.

But when I was asked how I deal with it, I simply shrugged. Do you get mad at the mountain for being where it is? No, you don’t. You learn to live around it. And that’s what I feel Mr. Dagari is, at least in South Africa. He is the mountain we all learned to live around.

I wasn’t surprised when Ryan released his notice about stepping away from the game. His recent absence had been mentioned by friends of mine, and we were expecting it. Still, I’m sad to see him go. We weren’t the best of friends, but when the game losses an honest person, we all lose an honest person. And honesty is something this game needs more than a new economic module or baby booms.

With those words said, I’d like to move on to my next topic. With Ryan stepping down, I’m here by declaring my candidacy for party president of the African Dignity Front.

I won’t sit here and bore you with a list of qualifications or reasons why you should vote for me. If you have questions, feel free to ask them. I have what I consider an open door policy, and am willing to answer most questions. You can ask them here, in the comments section, or contact me with a message, and I’ll respond as quickly as I can.

However, there is one thing I would consider to be my utmost responsibility should I be elected. It’s not the cliché call to have the ADF become a top five party. It’s not the mad drive for membership and numbers. My utmost responsibility would to have the ADF become a respectable and valid figure in South African politics.

I would accomplish this by writing a weekly paper, updating South Africans on the events occurring in their government in a fair and honest method. I would also legitimize the ADF by establishing it as a serious organization. I would move to create protocols and methods of operation that would, hopefully, serve the party into the future. An establishment of a standardized approach to policy and a set of values and goals that can shift and grow as South Africa moves forward are the goals I wish to tackle should I be elected.

A vote for me is a vote for the future of the African Dignity Front. It is a step down a long road to legitimization and respectability. There will be trolls and neigh-sayers along the way, but they are temporary and transitional. We, together, are moving away from those things, those temporary and transitional detractors, and are moving towards the magnificent goal of permanency.