Opinion Article | Ndzalama Mathebula
The African National Congress will infinitely be hailed for its vital role during the apartheid era from the armed struggle and popular resistant stance they anchored. Their mandate ensured a needed alternative for the South African black population.
The party still garnered enough support for the next three decades of the ANC’s deficient rule to stay in power despite its eminent deficiencies. Voters are inclined to measure or benchmark a political party’s ability to lead ethically by the extent to which they can solve the country’s challenges. However, are opposition parties to the ANC mandated to address where the ruling party fails?
From the rolling blackouts to the poor service delivery, rampant crime, and fragmentation within government departments, it is reflected through incompetency and high levels of unemployment. ANC’s governance continues to signal elements of a failing state. However, what is surprising is the fact that ANC may still win the 2024 elections.
This then begs the question of what still draws voters towards the ANC while deeming the party a better candidate with all its oversights. This encouraged one to fiercely study the political landscape of South Africa itself, thus questioning if there has never been a better candidate deemed suitable enough to replace the ANC. This alone signals defects within the opposition parties of South Africa.
In understanding why, the ANC remains with so much support that is more excellent than its deficiencies, we must return to its historical grounding. The role of the ANC in ending the apartheid era was significant and multifaceted, defined by diplomatic efforts to garner international support, protests, and armed resistance.
Their impact is noted in the Defiance Campaign 1952, which saw thousands of volunteers publicly break racially discriminatory laws. The 1960 Sharpevillemassacre was a turning point for ANC’s efforts, which led to the establishment of Umkhonto we Sizwe, an armed wing aimed at sabotaging the apartheid government. Moreover, they played a crucial role in the negotiations towards abolishing apartheid.
This demonstrates that the ANC was able to tentatively study the landscape and political needs of their supporters and aggressively anchor an alternative designed by a ‘savior attitude’ for the black majority.
This speaks to how the political party was able to strategically locate itself as a panacea to the apartheid era, which semi-proved its ability to lead and rule the country. This had gained the party sufficient support even before they were legally elected to power.
The purpose of the history and analogy above is not to praise the ANC but to demonstrate to opposition parties what aided and still aids the ANC to have sufficient support to stay in power. Unfortunately, looking at many opposition parties, it can be argued that many continuously fail to anchor trust, confidence, and credibility to the population; they need to demonstrate that they can rule.
The main concern badgering voters ahead of the 2024 elections is not on whether they should vote but rather on the options to vote for. This means there is a shortfall for an ANC alternative with a sufficient resolutive footprint to surpass the ruling party. This is most daunting upon the realization that our neighboring country, Zimbabwe, removed its dictator, Robert Mugabe, from power only to get a worse version of him, Emerson Mnangagwa.
Thus, on a comparative scale, South African voters are inherently fixed to avoid what we can term the ZANU-PF effect and its manifesting on South African grounds since they are conscious of its materialization in the Zimbabwean case.
The lack of confidence in these opposition parties mainly stems from their lack of needing more confidence in themselves, which is transparent to the voters. Firstly, many of them lack a clear purpose; instead, they always garner support through a narrative headline of removing the ANC, but at the back of everyone’s mind is what then happens after removing the ANC. What is apparent, however, is that these parties need a clear mandate on how to solve many of the challenges known to the country.
Secondly, these parties constantly need help locating the ‘niche market’ of the country, thereby providing and doing right where the ANC is failing to do so. When observing their manifestos, these parties have become mimics to the ruling ANC by going around in communities house to house asking where the ruling party is failing, handing our party regalia, and singing liberation songs.
They use propaganda to garner support by pointing out deficiencies already known to citizens, which we hope they can practically fix as an alternative to the ruling party. Lastly, these defects have, in many nuances, indicated to the voter that these parties are established for iniquitous reasons; hence, their purpose needs to be clarified, and they are slowly becoming mini-ANCs.
The argument above is supported by the fact that many of these opposition parties must address the challenges they constantly point out and prosecute in courts to a large extent. Thus, what would deem them suitable enough to not only replace but gracefully perform beyond what that ANC has provided thus far?
The 2024 electoral cycle needs more decisiveness and confidence for a better chance. Instead, its buildup is pronounced by confusion and uncertainty due to a better offer not being presented against the bad social contract already on the table.
This is the sad reality for the unemployed youth hoping for reforms that will alter their situations for the better, the hopeless individuals living below the poverty line, and many of the poor service delivery victims. The latter has significantly changed the primary purpose of voting and living in a democracy where we can embrace and enjoy a healthy social contract.
Therefore, opposition parties should have a clear mandate strategically designed for existing challenges faced by voters and communicate this with their voters. Provided they want to remove the ANC, they are inclined to do what the ANC did during the apartheid era by ensuring that they have an impact from a bottom-up approach that can be advocated for by voters before being elected.
This will give the voter enough confidence to vote for them since their rulership and impact would be semi-proven. They must be a panacea to the cancer ANC has become to change the voting trajectory of South Africa.
Ndzalama Mathebula is an assistant lecturer at the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Johannesburg. She has research interests and publications in energy and natural minerals, international political economy, political risk analysis, and African intellectualism. She writes in her capacity.
Ndzalama Mathebula is an assistant lecturer at the Department of Politics and International Relations, University of Johannesburg. She has research interests and publications in energy and natural minerals, international political economy, political risk analysis, and African intellectualism. She writes in her capacity.
________________________
Central News offers sponsored articles, Print Media, Social Media Marketing, Door To Door Pamphlet Distribution, podcast services, Video Production, live streaming , and paid interviews etc.
We guarantee exceptional exposure, reach, and engagement, with an excellent return on investment.
Advertisement:
To place your advert on our platforms (Print Newspaper or Digital Platforms) : Please email : sales@centralnews.co.za
For Business Related:
business@centralnews.co.za
Newsroom:
Send your Stories / Media Statements To: newsroom@centralnews.co.za
General Info:
info@centralnews.co.za
Office Administrator:
admin@centralnews.co.za
Whatsapp / Call: 081 495 5487
Website: https://www.centralnews.co.za
Social Media Platforms (@centralnewsza) : Linkedin, Facebook, Tiktok, Twitter, Instagram, Youtube
#centralnewsza #fscentralnews #nwcentralnews #gautengcentralnews
CENTRAL NEWS #centralnewslive
#centralnewsissue