Independent Electoral Commission (IEC) officials gather to collect voting materials at the Ntolwane Primary School polling station in Nkandla, on May 29, 2024, during South Africa’s general election.
JOHANNESBURG - South Africa has emerged from watershed elections. The vote saw the one-party parliamentary hegemony of the African National Congress (ANC) diminished. The question in many quarters now is, quo Vadis? Where to from here?
The post-election period has already, in three days, been marred by non-acceptance of results - by parties like the uMkhonto We Sizwe Party (MKP) led by former president Jacob Zuma - and general uncertainty about the willingness of parties to work together for the prosperity of South Africa. Most importantly, we have not ascertained what the withdrawal of the MKP from the process would mean for SA. The Economic Freedom Fighters have also come out with ‘non- negotiable’ ideological and policy demands for them to join any coalition, desirably one with a “humbled” ANC.
The way forward is not clear-cut, but what is apparent is that leadership of the calibre of Nelson Mandela is needed. People ready to put the needs of South Africans ahead of party-political ideological concerns. Intellectual Amilcar Cabral reminds us, “Always bear in mind that the people are not fighting for ideas, for the things in anyone's head. They are fighting to win material benefits, to live better and in peace, to see their lives go forward, to guarantee the future of their children.” This is more relevant in SA’s post-apartheid political history than ever.
Mandela and his generation prioritised the people over the stringent unbending will of the mind to reinforce political ideas. This does not mean the abandonment of socio-economic policies that were identified as “healers of the injustices of the past” in the Constitution. It simply means that the government, when formed, should draw on all the energies of- and work for the people of the Republic, both poor and rich. A leader above reproach, at least at face value, is needed to take us into the next phase of our democratic life.
Leadership is very important in a situation where a slight mistake may lead to catastrophic consequences for the country. Notwithstanding the differences, both ideologically and politically, the political parties that have gained enough electoral support to be in Parliament need to find common ground for the stability of this country. The time for finger-pointing and second-guessing is no longer there.
Mandela had to work with men like Pik Botha and FW de Klerk – who had been at the centre of killing and maiming his comrades using the state security apparatus – to charter a path towards sustainable governance and healing the nation. For their part, the apartheid leaders allowed themselves to be convinced that there could be a new South Africa, free from racial segregation and violent police brutality.
Mandela further made a truce with the Inkatha Freedom Party’s Mangosuthu Buthelezi and his cohort, who had been maiming ANC activists and leaders in the community.
These are two examples of the kind of ethos that our leaders need to espouse. Political and ideological tolerance is needed for this country to come out of this political crisis.
Thus the main issue that faces us in this period is whether we will see the emergence of a leadership of that calibre to assist in dealing with these uncertainties or not. The alternative would be worse not only for the leaders (many of whom them have amassed the wealth to be able to relocate to another country), but for ordinary South Africans, who are hoping for governmental stability to find jobs and get quality education, healthcare and service delivery in the next five years. The starting point is a leader who can draw all the energies available in South Africa and turn that into a stable government and one that will prioritise the will, aspirations and desires of the people.
It remains to be seen if the ANC will return to power or not. And under what conditions, if any, it will get a majority to govern. These are trying times for President Cyril Ramaphosa of the ANC as he tries to navigate areas that none of his predecessors have had to tread.
Nkateko Muloiwa
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