Millions of South Africans from all walks life joined hands on Sunday in celebrating Freedom Day.
Every year since 1994, we have remembered April 27 as the day our country finally buried the demon of apartheid.
The day marked the genesis of a new era in which skin colour ceased to define us.
Through that first election, the dignity of all South Africans — both black and white — was restored.
So many strides have been made since the dawn of democracy.
Millions of houses have been built, water and electricity have been provided to areas which had been overlooked before, health facilities have been created and education has been made more accessible to previously disadvantaged people.
SA also has an extensive social welfare net which continues to cushion the most vulnerable communities against the effects of poverty.
Above all, our constitution is hailed globally as one of the most progressive as it guarantees so many fundamental basic rights based on humanity, freedom, justice and peace.
However, while we celebrate all these milestones we must not be oblivious to the reality that ours is a democracy which has left many citizens behind.
While political freedom was achieved in 1994, the socioeconomic conditions of most South Africans have either not changed or are getting worse.
SA remains the most unequal society with a Gini coefficient, a measure of income inequality, projected to be 0.63 in 2024.
The Gini coefficient ranges from 0 to 1, with 0 representing perfect equality and 1 representing perfect inequality
We have reported that people in some parts of the Eastern Cape still lack basics such as water.
Others share drinking water from heavily polluted sources with their domestic animals, risking the spread deadly diseases such as diarrhoea.
Incidences and the extent of poverty in this province are well documented.
In 2023, we reported about two mothers, in incidents in Port St Johns and Butterworth, killing their children and later committing suicide.
In both cases, poverty was cited as a possible motivation.
Corruption continues as the few connected individuals get richer through devious means.
Little if any action is taken against the transgressors.
As has become the norm, politicians dominated the Freedom Day events at both national and provincial levels.
It was not lost to them to tell us what we already knew — that poverty, unemployment and inequality are deepening.
Promises of solutions were equally made, but there is nothing new. Promises without action remain just that.
Freedom Day should not merely be a commemoration, but a catalyst for renewed commitment to justice, equality and accountability.
As citizens we need to reaffirm our collective responsibility to build a nation where the ideals of freedom are realised for all.
We can’t continue to be promised pie in the sky by politicians.