Ruling well comes second to getting power
•Fri, 6 Jul 2007
Within the past eight weeks Gallagher Estate has hosted the two faces of South African
politics — the DA’s federal congress over the May 5-6 weekend and the ANC’s policy
congress this past weekend. The contrast between the outcomes of the two congresses
provides a showcase of the issues and choices that characterise our politics.
Central to both congresses, of course, were the issues of leadership and power. For the
DA, apart from those areas of local government where it enjoys political control, power is an
aspiration. But it is how the DA approaches that aspiration that provides the first of the
object lessons the ANC should heed.
Power for the DA is not an end in itself but rather a mandate to win from the voters the
authority to apply the policies they have endorsed. That philosophy should be central to
any party that describes itself as democratic. Moreover, it implies that there is a contract
with the voters to carry out their wishes and to be accountable to them. The term that
covers all of this, like a portmanteau, is governance. The sole purpose of power should be
to provide good governance.
Nowhere in the various media reports of the ANC’s policy conference was the word
governance apparent. Instead power, its extension and consolidation, seemed to be the
overriding concern of the exercise. This is not surprising when, as former presidential
spokesman Bheki Khumalo wrote in the Mercury on July 4, the ANC still sees itself as a
liberation movement and not as a political party. Whatever one makes of that statement, it
translates into a mindset stuck in a time warp.
Liberation was 13 years ago. Power was the objective to effect liberation then. Now it should
be the means to deliver governance. Instead celebrating power seems to have become an
end in itself. Sadly lacking was any sense of humility. English poet Stephen Spender, in an
essay on the excesses of power, wrote of the need for power to be tempered by humility.
“Without humility,” he warned, “power turns to public lies.”
In the first place, the issue of leadership seems to have become confused with that of
power. Bheki Khumalo goes to great lengths to justify the decision not to place term limits
on ANC leadership, citing the fact that no such limits existed in the U.S. Constitution until
1951. In his view, the fact that Franklin Roosevelt won four terms as president was fine
because Roosevelt received voter endorsement.
But there the worth of Khumalo’s attempt at analogy ends. The United States is an
established democracy with a tried and tested constitution. Voters preferred Roosevelt’s
leadership and the courts rejected certain aspects of his New Deal legislation. The strong
two-party system in the U.S. and the clear-cut separation of powers between the three
branches of government is very different from what prevails in South Africa.
Democracy here is a mere fledgling The ruling party is comfortably ensconced in power with
70% of the seats in Parliament. Its senior members have frequently expressed their
admiration for totalitarian states such as Cuba. They have also failed to denounce the
tyranny of Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe. The independence of the courts is under
pressure and the fact that the judiciary has the likes of Judge John Hlophe in its ranks
sends out very negative signals. An ANC presidential contender has offered a tranche of
shares worth R6,8 million to a KwaZulu-Natal judge. We have a government that is very
slow to act against corruption despite such controversies as Oilgate, Travelgate and the
arms deal.
Thanks to the practice of jobs for pals, the interests of the party have become
indistinguishable from those of the state, with governance the major casualty. Reports of
corruption within the public service continue to increase, according to a report of the Public
Service Commission published last month. Of course, there is no greater indicator of the
shambles that passes for governance than the fact that only seven of 135 audits conducted
on 34 state departments by the Auditor-General between 2001 and 2006 were satisfactory.
Yet not a single minister or director-general was sacked.
In all this, leadership has been non-existent. As the titular head Thabo Mbeki has presided
over government but he has not prevailed. If he had exerted direction and control the
composition of his cabinet would have undergone radical change. Instead, power and
position have been the overriding concerns. The ANC’s recent conference exemplified that.
The perception conveyed is that South Africa has become the ANC’s fiefdom and its
inhabitants mere vassals. Mbeki will stay on as president of the ANC if he wants to,
irrespective of criticism. Read into that the fact that a constitutional change is in the offing:
section 88 (2) which limits a person to two terms as president seems set to come under
pressure.
The road to tyranny under Mugabe had similar beginnings.
All politics is a struggle for power. But it should be about delivering on a mandate fairly
achieved. It is not about the aggrandisement of power for the sake of a particular group and
a preoccupation with position. Beyond the promotion of good governance as its primary
objective, a political party should promote renewal.
But shackled to the socialist ideals of the Freedom Charter and in harness with partners
who have different agendas, the ANC can pay only lip service to governance and renewal.
Published: 6 July 2007
The Witness, Pietermaritzburg
•Fri, 6 Jul 2007
Within the past eight weeks Gallagher Estate has hosted the two faces of South African
politics — the DA’s federal congress over the May 5-6 weekend and the ANC’s policy
congress this past weekend. The contrast between the outcomes of the two congresses
provides a showcase of the issues and choices that characterise our politics.
Central to both congresses, of course, were the issues of leadership and power. For the
DA, apart from those areas of local government where it enjoys political control, power is an
aspiration. But it is how the DA approaches that aspiration that provides the first of the
object lessons the ANC should heed.
Power for the DA is not an end in itself but rather a mandate to win from the voters the
authority to apply the policies they have endorsed. That philosophy should be central to
any party that describes itself as democratic. Moreover, it implies that there is a contract
with the voters to carry out their wishes and to be accountable to them. The term that
covers all of this, like a portmanteau, is governance. The sole purpose of power should be
to provide good governance.
Nowhere in the various media reports of the ANC’s policy conference was the word
governance apparent. Instead power, its extension and consolidation, seemed to be the
overriding concern of the exercise. This is not surprising when, as former presidential
spokesman Bheki Khumalo wrote in the Mercury on July 4, the ANC still sees itself as a
liberation movement and not as a political party. Whatever one makes of that statement, it
translates into a mindset stuck in a time warp.
Liberation was 13 years ago. Power was the objective to effect liberation then. Now it should
be the means to deliver governance. Instead celebrating power seems to have become an
end in itself. Sadly lacking was any sense of humility. English poet Stephen Spender, in an
essay on the excesses of power, wrote of the need for power to be tempered by humility.
“Without humility,” he warned, “power turns to public lies.”
In the first place, the issue of leadership seems to have become confused with that of
power. Bheki Khumalo goes to great lengths to justify the decision not to place term limits
on ANC leadership, citing the fact that no such limits existed in the U.S. Constitution until
1951. In his view, the fact that Franklin Roosevelt won four terms as president was fine
because Roosevelt received voter endorsement.
But there the worth of Khumalo’s attempt at analogy ends. The United States is an
established democracy with a tried and tested constitution. Voters preferred Roosevelt’s
leadership and the courts rejected certain aspects of his New Deal legislation. The strong
two-party system in the U.S. and the clear-cut separation of powers between the three
branches of government is very different from what prevails in South Africa.
Democracy here is a mere fledgling The ruling party is comfortably ensconced in power with
70% of the seats in Parliament. Its senior members have frequently expressed their
admiration for totalitarian states such as Cuba. They have also failed to denounce the
tyranny of Zimbabwe president Robert Mugabe. The independence of the courts is under
pressure and the fact that the judiciary has the likes of Judge John Hlophe in its ranks
sends out very negative signals. An ANC presidential contender has offered a tranche of
shares worth R6,8 million to a KwaZulu-Natal judge. We have a government that is very
slow to act against corruption despite such controversies as Oilgate, Travelgate and the
arms deal.
Thanks to the practice of jobs for pals, the interests of the party have become
indistinguishable from those of the state, with governance the major casualty. Reports of
corruption within the public service continue to increase, according to a report of the Public
Service Commission published last month. Of course, there is no greater indicator of the
shambles that passes for governance than the fact that only seven of 135 audits conducted
on 34 state departments by the Auditor-General between 2001 and 2006 were satisfactory.
Yet not a single minister or director-general was sacked.
In all this, leadership has been non-existent. As the titular head Thabo Mbeki has presided
over government but he has not prevailed. If he had exerted direction and control the
composition of his cabinet would have undergone radical change. Instead, power and
position have been the overriding concerns. The ANC’s recent conference exemplified that.
The perception conveyed is that South Africa has become the ANC’s fiefdom and its
inhabitants mere vassals. Mbeki will stay on as president of the ANC if he wants to,
irrespective of criticism. Read into that the fact that a constitutional change is in the offing:
section 88 (2) which limits a person to two terms as president seems set to come under
pressure.
The road to tyranny under Mugabe had similar beginnings.
All politics is a struggle for power. But it should be about delivering on a mandate fairly
achieved. It is not about the aggrandisement of power for the sake of a particular group and
a preoccupation with position. Beyond the promotion of good governance as its primary
objective, a political party should promote renewal.
But shackled to the socialist ideals of the Freedom Charter and in harness with partners
who have different agendas, the ANC can pay only lip service to governance and renewal.
Published: 6 July 2007
The Witness, Pietermaritzburg
Councillor's Corner
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Lifetime Bluff resident serving his third term in office as representative
of the area. Member of the Democratic Alliance.
of the area. Member of the Democratic Alliance.
This weeks Councillor comments
| Duncan Du Bois |
Phone:467-0343 or mobile:083 291-4913
Municipal Manager - Dr Sutcliffe: Tel 311-2130 ;
SutcliffeM@durban.gov.za
SutcliffeM@durban.gov.za
Report dumping or unauthorised use of verges; Phone 311-7448
Metro All-Call / All hours Tel No.: 361-0000
Metro Police: Tel 402-0680
Brighton Beach SAPS: Tel 451 8060 / 8059
Brighton Beach Community Policing Forum Chairman: Carl Knauff : 082 449-6503
Metro All-Call / All hours Tel No.: 361-0000
Metro Police: Tel 402-0680
Brighton Beach SAPS: Tel 451 8060 / 8059
Brighton Beach Community Policing Forum Chairman: Carl Knauff : 082 449-6503
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More Interesting
Reading
Ruling well
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SUTCLIFFE'S BAASSKAP
RENAMING ROADS
BEACH NEWS
Reading
Ruling well
Bluff Movies
Can Zim happen
here?
SUTCLIFFE'S BAASSKAP
RENAMING ROADS
BEACH NEWS
| Educating for Eternity |
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You can contact Councillor D Du Bois by e-mail @ dubois@axxess.co.za