Dr Cyril's diplomatic disconnect

Imagine a car. What do you see? What colour is it? Is it moving?

- KYLE ZEEMAN

Between 1% and 4% of the world's population can't.

It’s a condition called aphantasia and it affects a person’s ability to visualise mental images.

For many South Africans, a state of political aphantasia has set in. They simply cannot visualise how their community, suburb, city, province, or the country can recover from decades of neglect, corruption and decay.

Their daily life is a worry about whether there is water to wash themselves and electricity to make breakfast. On the way to work, they worry if they will be a victim of crime and, during the commute, whether the ride will be derailed by potholes and broken traffic lights.