SONA 24
I fear Ramaphosa will pull a Protea on me this evening. I am increasingly convinced that the sport known as cricket and the South African national side exists to constantly break my heart. Of course last night (7th February) it was soccer's turn to pile on the disappointment.
But back to Ramaphosa. It is no secret that I do not align politically with him. I am not and have never been a supporter of the African National Congress as a political party - in fact I believe it was a fatal error in the transition to democracy in South Africa for the ANC to transition into a political party - and there are many policy positions and matters of politics with which I fundamentally and irreconcilably disagree with Ramaphosa (and Mbeki and Mandela and de Klerk and every single person to have held office as head of state or government in South Africa). However, Ramaphosa has often been amongst the strongest political leaders in South Africa and I have found many reasons to both respect and admire him. Sadly though his abject failures in certain critical regards brings about profound disappointment. The failings are seldom on matters of policy disagreement or the like but rather where he fundamentally fails to practice what he preaches or he preaches contrary to what he has previously committed. In particular it is some of the people he chooses to continue to associate with and to afford political power and coverage too that creates such a problem.
But ultimately I recognize the profound capacity for greatness in the man. More importantly I have a deep reverence for the office that he holds. The Presidency of the Republic of South Africa must carry greatness and dignity. Unlike Zuma but like his other predecessors Ramaphosa has brought dignity to the office.
Turning to SONA tonight. During the Mandela presidency there was no doubt that election results would be respected and that a peaceful transfer of power or entry into coalition in good faith would be the outcome of an ANC loss at the polls. Mandela famously made statements the reflected a profound belief that any political party had an absolute moral responsibility to earn the votes received and that it is the electorate that is the "owner" of our democracy with the absolute right to vote out of office those it votes into office. While I am not aware of him going quite as far as some suggest I have little doubt that what is verifiably known reflects the belief in the power residing with the electorate. Of course the ANC has for many years thereafter never been seriously faced with the prospect of "losing" an election.
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There are many possible outcomes which the ANC would consider as a loss and 2024 presents the first time in a national election that nationally the ANC may be sufficiently rejected by voters to result in a situation of a loss of power. I am inclined to believe that even if the ANC drops to below 50% it should be part of forming the next government and that Ramaphosa has every right to campaign hard especially outside of contexts where he is serving in a capacity of head of state. He may even do some credit grabbing tonight that plays to garner political support.
But SONA is a time when the critical message that the electorate decides, that the election will be respected, that the elections must be and will be peaceful. It is an opportunity for him to affirm that he will be honoured to return to office but will with a mixture of sadness and gladness pass on the presidency to whomever the National Assembly elects after its sitting following the election. There is, partly as a result of the antics of the EFF, a fundamental question in our nation about the nature of our politics and he has (at least in my view) an absolute moral obligation to speak to the choice between a democratic state and a society in which democracy is unvalued and instead obstructionism and destructive disruptionism are central pillars of political life.
It is not just because I believe a failure to say certain things at SONA would represent a moral failing that I will be disappointed. Rather let us be cynical for a moment. Ramaphosa's personal political future is best served by aligning himself and the ANC with respect for electoral outcomes.
But let us wait and see
Interior Design, Architectural Design, Artist.
1 年Hi Paul, Thanks to you, my understanding of SA politics has grown considerably. I am still very much an outside observer and look forward to seeing democracy be promoted there in that mix blessed land. I am very impressed by the paragraph you wrote; “a fundamental question in our nation about the nature of our politics…. to the choice between a democratic state and a society in which democracy is unvalued and instead obstructionism and destructive disruptionism are central pillars of political life.” This sharp and brilliant comment, addresses the permanent climate of international politics. Witness Hungary’s presidential huri-kiri just yesterday, Gasa and Republican contrarianism. A thing I have observed and believe to be true is that democracy is dependent on a basic set of christian values by the majority of a country’scitizens. I now rush to point out that formal religion is diametrically & contrarily opposed to democracy including Christianity. Religious conviction necessarily demands that “obstructionism and destructive disruptionism” be “central pillars of political life.” Russia is an obvious exception as is Japan and Korea. Others? Anyway, I would like to take up your paragraph and use it with some adjustment.