22/10/12
Public forums are a particular kind of political debate—both a contest among professional politicians or commentators and a vox populi airing of public opinion. This evening’s discussion sponsored by a local newspaper and a German think tank and taking place in the upmarket Johannesburg suburb of Houghton, comes at an opportune time when this country, always a fractious proposition, is in a particularly high state of anxiety over the future. In the same month that over 50 people have been killed in violent labour disputes, 100,000 miners are on strike and international confidence in the country is falling—underlined by a credit downgrade—the perception of drift and decline is undeniable. South Africa is at a cross roads and the trend lines are negative. Much of the sense of malaise draws from the rot inside the ruling ANC party—riven by factional conflicts as well as, more seriously, arrogance and incompetence. A party that regards itself to have a revolutionary mission to govern is impervious to criticism and incapable of standing aside from areas where it cannot manage and should best leave alone.
In other words the ANC is now part of the problem. Corruption has overtaken many of its endeavours including its—badly needed, but badly executed—black economic empowerment programmes which have been captured by corrupt behaviour, producing a class of tenderpreneurs rather than legitimate businesses. The volume of scandal and malpractice brought to light—only a fraction of which is prosecuted—points to deep seated malaise. Held to account by a noisy civil society and independent judicial system the government has come to regard such constraints as “counter-revolutionary”. Although the ANC includes a “constitutionalist” faction that wishes to submit to the rule of law as a necessity for modern governance that will help keep it clean and effective, powerful groups have begun to describe media and other criticism in terms of conspiracy and wish to up the ante and impose a more radical agenda, in other words to “double down” on policies that are already failing.
This takes place at a time when the party is in a leadership crisis that will play out at its upcoming congress in Mangaung in December—an event that nominally celebrates the movement’s 100th anniversary, but is coming to be regarded as a signpost for its own death throws. Removal of the country’s affable, but tainted, president Jacob Zuma, is one possible outcome, although there is little expectation that this will lead to change for the better. The question of leadership and what should be expected from the Mangaung conference is the subject of tonight’s discussion—sponsored by the Critical Thinking Forum—and for which a panel has been assembled.
The panel is as good a representation as any of contemporary South African society. The moderator is the bright and articulate Xoliswa Gwala, a popular radio talk show host, joined on the panel by Eusebius McKaiser, also a radio announcer, university lecturer, public intellectual and Rhodes scholar of formidable ability which he combines with an urban hipster’s social ease and informality. Still in their late 20s, both these figures represent the “born free” generation—confident and successful and having come of age in the post-apartheid era.
The second panelist is Bantu Holomisa, an opposition parliamentarian who at one point was military leader of the Transkei, a Bantustan structure of the old Apartheid era. A former cabinet minister expelled from the ANC for speaking out on corruption, he leads a rump opposition party that has survived but not thrived. Like many of the country’s small opposition parties it carries the genetic imprint of the ANC and its disputes with the Mother party are deeply personal as much as political. His presence here tonight, he explains, is the reason why the government is not present as the ANC refuses to share any public platform with him. Mr Holomisa, or “The General” as he is called, speaks with a slow and deliberate manner, befitting a Xhosa gentleman and brings some dignity to the discussion.
Third on the panel is Solly Mapaila, deputy secretary general of the South African Communist Party and a member of the ruling ANC alliance. As the government itself refused to attend Mapaila is the nearest thing to an official representative. He is also, easily, the least sympathetic of the three panelists—openly doctrinaire and rigid in his views and defensive that there is any crisis to be concerned about in the government’s conduct. All three are given a few minutes to address the evening’s discussion topic: “What kind of leadership should come out of Mangaung”.
McKaiser opens by describing what should be desired from ANC leadership, and that this should be ethical and effective. He faults the ANC not for its vision but for its inability to deliver and points to its “massive systemic organisational challenges”. He also calls for leadership that meets ethical standards, rather than “doing enough to stay out of jail”, a reference to President Zuma’s long standing legal travails in which he has narrowly avoided conviction on corruption charges.
McKaiser’s critique goes further than this as he believes the ruling party is stuck in an internal dialogue with itself rather than engaging with the public and convincing by the force of its arguments, pointing to this as evidence that it has run out of ideas. It’s basic character is in the narrative of a liberation movement rather than as a government and that ending apartheid, its original reason for being having been accomplished, it does not know what it exists for. Verwoerd—the architect of apartheid—is dead, he says, now what?
Holomisa’s presentation is short but folksy with pregnant pauses and quiet delivery and although this could not be further away from the rapid fire exuberance of McKaiser, who is openly gay, his impact is effective. The problem, he says, is a lack of discipline and accountability by those running the government, but also arrogance, stemming from the ANC’s belief that they were “the only ones who brought apartheid to its knees; others played a role in that too”. A third problem that leadership should address is the corruption and politicisation of the state that is occurring under the ANC, including the system of “cadre deployment” whereby the party appoints its own people directly to oversee civil service workers at local level. The results can be seen in the disastrous collapse of technical capacity of government departments. The problems he says are deep rooted and a change of leadership will not change this “quagmire”. As for the various candidates aspiring to oust Zuma in what is an openly poisonous leadership battle, Holomisa notes that none of them—including the front runner, Kgalema Motlanthe—have said anything about what they would do. He concludes by wishing well to the ANC’s next leader but asks that they respect the decisions of the courts and “please avoid corruption”.
Solly Mapaila of the SACP inserts himself into this debate by flatly denying that there is any crisis in government or the ANC and asserts that the party’s vision is “the correct one” despite some issues with delivery. There are gasps in the audience at this statement which seems to fuse him personally with official denial of all that ails South Africa and the ANC. As the closest thing here to a representative of the government he has no choice but to defend the official record, although he does so in a way so dogmatic that his rapport with the audience has evaporated almost before it has begun. This is a man used to issuing direction to party cadres, not attempting to convince public opinion. A former Umkhonto weSizwe military leader during the liberation era and someone with a hard mien, Mapaila gives the impression of a committee man carrying out an unpleasant task—dealing with the public. Known as “comrade crack-down” within the SACP he is on record as labeling the media as “part of a liberal offensive” and is known for his grasp of Leninist theory and personally austere lifestyle. For one measure of the character of the man it is worth reviewing his biographical summary in this evening’s programme—clearly drafted by himself—where he is described with some pride as toiling as a SACP organiser to root out “workerists and opportunists”. This is someone whose life experience is in the ideological and organisational trenches of the ANC and SACP. The country’s problems Mapaila claims, in his own presentation, stem from monopoly capitalism—the business class which he says the opposition Democratic Alliance represents—and says that the ANC has crafted the best vision for the country anchored in a “collectivist mind set”.
When the floor is opened to questions it is as though opening a door to a tide of frustration. The audience is largely middle class or well to do with a sprinkling of whites—who are largely silent this evening as though present at someone else’s family dispute—and much of the comment reflects frustration that “things are not working”. One woman, who identifies herself as a public health worker in a state hospital, stands up and delivers a critique of the dysfunction and failure she experiences in the health service, her voice shaking with emotion. Although the questions and comment are varied a common theme is disappointment—even shame—over the failures of the ANC, the party that many of those here have invested so much of themselves in.
One man, whom I encountered in the lobby before the start of the event, seems to typify this strand of opinion. Thin and elegantly dressed, he has identified himself as a “senior” ANC official and ex director general of a government department. When given the opportunity to speak, he begins by respectfully addressing General Holomisa, whom he seems to know personally, apologising on behalf of the ANC for having snubbed him by not attending. The gravity of the failures and frustrations of the government that have been aired tonight are not something that should be denied or ignored, he says, but calls upon the audience to work with the party in order to be heard and find solution. The honesty and humility of this man’s message, so at odds with the defensiveness and denial of the government, is what allows for a sense of optimism to be taken away from this meeting. South Africa, which has almost perpetually been at “five minutes to midnight”, has also shown that it can draw back from the brink of disaster.