We have a tendency to forget. We have mastered the art of outrage and, in particular, expressing that frustration. South Africa is indeed alive with the mood of outrage, with an average of 32 protests recorded every day.

We must guard against the idea that we are exceptional. We look at the rest of the continent and smile wryly, thinking that we are immune to the challenges of trying to build a meaningful and vibrant democracy.

The failure to master constant vigilance has cost us. As a result, the dysfunctional and abnormal have become the norm. We have bought into the need to place our leaders on pedestals and only then to find ourselves outraged when they inevitably fail us.

Our obsession or reliance on the “big men/women” of politics is dangerous. We forget the important issues, and we forget the moments that will define our democracy, because we are so reliant on the big hitters of our landscape.

On 31 March 2015, the Farlam Commission presented its report on the Marikana massacre to President Zuma, after an arduous process of engaging with evidence, and many months of wrangling, evidence in chief, arguments over legal fees and some showmanship.

That is all very interesting, and there may still be a fight over whether the Farlam report is made public, but for now we must remember that Marikana was for many South Africans a turning point or a defining moment. It is my hope that Farlam report is made available publically in toto and that there is not a fight to keep it secret, as was government’s position on the Khampepe Report on the Zimbabwean elections.

It would be simple to just reduce the Marikana massacre to a number or chapter in our history books, but on that day, families lost loved ones, fathers were taken, brothers, sons and husbands were all lost too soon, and in a very violent way.

We must not forget that on 16 August 2012, 34 people, mostly employed by Lonmin, were killed, after the South African Police Service opened fire on those striking miners.

Contrary to the views of Bertrand Russell, a British philosopher, democracy is not simply about electing the man (or woman) “who’ll get the blame”. This moment requires us to demand more from ourselves, and to ensure that we are able to really begin to do the hard work required instead of simply looking where to assign the blame.

The events of Marikana and the Farlam Commission Report should hang heavy on our collective memories, but sadly we always seem to be distracted by other, more ‘pressing’ issues.

“When the shooting started, there was complete chaos. None of the deponents reported any warning from the soldiers before the shooting started. Most did not know where the shots were coming from; many were convinced they were being shot at from the helicopters.”

The aforementioned quote is not from the Farlam Commission, but rather from an earlier time in our bloody history. The quote is from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, when it considered the events of the Bhisho massacre of 7 September 1992, where the Apartheid-homeland Defence Force killed 28 ANC supporters.

The quoted paragraph and the events of the Bhisho massacre are harrowingly similar to the events of Marikana. History is cyclical. Yet somehow, more ‘pressing’ issues take centre stage in our collective attention space.

It may be easier to focus on the other news this week, especially since Mr Zwelinzima Vavi has been expelled from Cosatu. This is an important issue and there will, of course, be a need to monitor how the expulsion of Mr Vavi affects the United Front, Cosatu, the tripartite alliance, the ANC and, broadly, South Africa. We must, however, not lose focus on the bigger issues that face our collective future in our obsession with the stories of the ‘big’ men/women.

We must reflect on why these issues are so important to us. We require some introspection to assess why we have become so consumed by a handful of prominent individuals, who seem to lurch us from one news cycle to the next, without regard to the bigger issues that face South Africa.

Surely, the most important issue, in my opinion, raised by Mr Vavi in his very lengthy explanation letter/document about the latest saga at Cosatu House – an explanation which would be better used as the basis for a court application – is simply the plea, “When will this ever stop?”

This closing by Mr Vavi is fitting, especially in this time of outrage and distraction.

When will we stop being bothered by the manoeuvrings of all the big men and women? When will we begin to focus our collective energies on holding everyone to account? When will we be able to expect honesty and accountability from those who have been elected to serve us? When will we hold those responsible for Marikana accountable? When will the abnormal and dysfunctional be rooted out? When will we reach our turning point? When will we begin to focus on the structural and growing inequalities that face our country? When will we confront the issues of privilege that are layered throughout our society?

I am reminded by the collective efforts of the #RhodesMustFall movement that we do have the capacity to demand change, we do have the ability to coalesce around the idea of shaping our own future, and that all of this is possible. We appear to be waiting for another moment.

We must also remember that these moments that bring change are often messy and imperfect. Lest we forget that Marikana was a watershed moment. That date of 16 August 2012 should be burnt into our collective memories. It was a wake-up call and we should stop pressing the snooze button on that moment. We need to act.

Indeed, when will this ever stop? DM