So many things has happened since my last blog entry. It seems that when we have to write we are to busy to write and when we have time to write all the important things has passed.
South Africa completed its national elections on 7 May which occupied my mind. 29 parties competed for votes. The African National Congress, the rulling party, again won the elections convincingly with 62% of the votes. Their support however dropped from 65.7% which they gained in the 2009 election. The drop can mostly be ascribed to storm clouds around some of the actions of the South African President. With a 73% voter turn out it is still a convincing win for any political party. The opposition party, the Democratic Alliance, gained most from the Presidents decrease in popularity, by gaining 22% of the votes relative to the previous election’s 16.6%. The Congress of the People was the biggest losers of the election. They had 8% of the vote in 2009 as a new entering party and ended up this election with only 0.67% of the vote. Their demise was can totally be ascribed to leadership infighting where the leaders ended up in court to determine who is the actual leader. They fought to end up with a bone that was just an illusion. The new comer this year was a more radical party called the Economic Freedom Fighters who comfortably slipped into the 3rd place with 6% of the votes. They promote the nationalisation of mines, big business etc. Their leader, Mr Malema was kicked out of the ruling party in 2013 and he mobilised within less than 8 months more than a million votes and will certainly bring a new dimension to South African politics. The Inkatha Freedom party gained the fourth place with just over 2% of the vote which is almost a 50% drop since the previous elections…their drop can be attributed to a split in the party. The Natonal Freedom Party broke away from the Inkatha freedom party to get to the 5th point.
You wil not find me in any of the first 5 parties. My vote went for the Freedom Front Plus, a party that primarily drives interest politics and promotes minority rights with some emphasis on protecting the rights of Afrikaners as a minority group. The party gained only 0.9% of the votes but they experienced a 13% growth from the previous election and they gained an additional seat in the National assembly. It is a small party but they have very competent leaders and has achieved a lot in the past, mostly by using legislation and the courts to fight issues where they think the ruling party abuse their power. Off course resources are limited and they need to select carefully where they assert themselves. South Africa working as a proportional election system and teh efficiency of the party makes it worthwhile to put my vote behind a smaller more effective party. They are the 7th biggest party of the 29 that took part in the election and will continue to play a role in ensuring that diverse views are heard during our parliamentary debates.
zeal4living
I assume the political parties are divided somewhat along racial and tribal lines – could you comment on this or is the subject too volatile? I appreciate the fact that you are employed by the government – is your employment politically managed?
True democratic government is, in my opinion, strongly dependent on basic voter education and voter agreement on a universal set of basic cultural values – is such developing in SA?
Hi tychecat. I am glad to hear from you. Much of the voting is still along racial and tribal lines. The African National Congress is primarily an African party of black people but they have many tribes in their fold. The Democratic Alliance was traditionally a more white party but they have done a lot to move towards being a multi racial party and has shown convincingly now that they have a members of all races in their fold. The Economic Freedom Fighters are a new party and not build on race or tribe but on the plight of the poor and a call for socialism. Although mostly black people their aims are less focused on race based politics. The Inkatha Freedom Party and the National Freedom Party are both primarily from the Zulu tribe.
I am employed by the Parliament which is independent from the Executive government. Parliament represents the people and serve all the parties without bias or preference. My position is therefore not dependent on any particular party being in office.
South Africa’s democracy is built primarily around our constitution which is robust and probably one of the most advanced constitutions. It represents to a large degree the common set of values that bind us together since it was the product of multiple parties working together to negotiate a common set of principles that will guide us along. Cultural values will remain diverse in South Africa but almost all look at the constitution as the principle legislative framework that unite South Africans irrespective of culture. In terms of voter education, I do think a large percentage is well educated but many people don’t vote for a idea but rather vote for a political party since that party is part of their identity.
Thank you for a good and concise summary of the elections. I find the developing political face of South Africa fascinating.
The party that you support sounds like the same one that I would support. Sorry they have such a small percentage of votes. I find the politics of other nations fascinating.
(by the way, this is “gottobereal64” from xanga – my blog here is private, so I will send you an invitation if I haven’t already)