Manners maketh the man

Since coming to live in Zululand years ago there is one particular aspect of life with which I shall never be reconciled.
It has to do with the cavalier concept of time, or ignoring time, appointments, meetings and other duly diarised activities.
One’s entire life - as I was raised - is maintained and indeed sustained on a respect for keeping appointments, keeping promises and generally considering the well-being of others.

But what often happens in Zululand?
People with whom one has appointments arrive late or not at all and when this is raised, you are told that this is ‘just Zululand time’.
Functions are catered, at great cost, by large organisations for instance, RSVPs are filed and on the night of the event only a third of the expected guests turn up.
Worse, more show up than catered for and insist on being served.
This is grossly wasteful, needlessly expensive and utterly selfish.
This newspaper has files full of such occurrences, some involving high-profile dignitaries, about which we don’t as a matter of protocol really write when they commit such faux pas.
Or you make and diarise an appointment, turn up a few minutes early and are left waiting only to be told that it is no longer possible for the person you drove 100kms to see to keep the appointment.
Complaining about this you are once again told ‘this is Zululand time’, or ‘this is African time’.
This behaviour is certainly not a function of culture here in Zululand, regardless of what some may say.
Among the most punctual people I know - who cannot properly function without proper time management - are Mandla Nkosi, Municipal Manager of Mbonambi and his Mayor Mr ME Mthethwa.

Manners
Mr BB Biyela the Municipal Manager of the uThungulu District Municipality is another, although in my experience I cannot say this for some of his senior Councillors, whom I shall not name and shame.
These social aspects of everyday living must be discussed openly in an open society, not studiously avoided as anthropological curiosities, which may (or may not) irritate or offend others.
Being on time for meetings and keeping appointments are essential to getting KZN and South Africa on a competitive par with the rest of the developed world, with which we co-exist.
I mean, how would we feel if we arrived at an international airport to be told no one knew when in fact the scheduled flight would be departing?
Or that the bank had decided to keep its doors closed at the end of the month when we were expecting a pay cheque?
Perhaps they’ll open tomorrow, perhaps not.
Obviously there are always valid circumstances, which prevent appointments and undertakings being kept.
Then explanations are given, and accepted.
For the rest let’s forget this nonsense of ‘Zululand time’ and just join the rest of the world in keeping our appointments, showing up for events we’ve accepted, and displaying the good manners we expect from others.