Published: Wednesday, May 22, 2024
CAPE TOWN (South Africa) — The African National Congress has been a force in South Africa politics for many years. The movement was dedicated to liberating Black people from oppression by white minority rule, and to the lofty principles of democracy and equality for all South Africans.
Nelson Mandela was widely regarded as a force of good, having spent 27 years behind bars for his opposition to apartheid and racial discrimination.
South Africans are growing increasingly dissatisfied with the ANC 30 years after it transformed from a liberation group to a party in power at the end apartheid, in 1994. They feel that it has not lived up to its promise.
South Africans are voting on May 29, in a national elections that could be the largest rejection of the ANC yet. The ANC has ruled one of Africa’s biggest countries largely without challenge since it led to the downfall of apartheid.
The ANC has become a symbol of corruption and failed governance. Here’s why the famous party has lost its way.
The ANC faced a challenge in converting the rights of every South African to vote, and other freedoms to a better quality of life, particularly for the Black majority, who had been systematically repressed.
It has been hard for the ANC to maintain this after its initial success in raising living standard in its first ten years in power. South Africa has one of highest unemployment rates and is ranked among the most unequal nations. Its widespread poverty, which still disproportionately impacts Black people, is the main criticism for the ANC government’s first three decades.
The ANC has repeatedly pointed out the difficulty of reversing half a century of racist laws during apartheid, and hundreds of years before that of European colonialism which kept millions of people in poverty. It claims that South Africa has improved since apartheid, and this is certainly true.
The most pressing problem for South Africans is the failure of basic government services. Communities across the country protest against the lack electricity in their communities, the broken or non-existent water and sewer systems, the garbage that piles up on the streets, and the shortage of housing, which leaves millions of people living in shacks.
According to the World Bank’s estimates, around half of South Africa’s 62 million population lives below the poverty line. ANC officials, however, have been accused of enriching themselves through a series of corruption scandals.
The alleged corruption was particularly bad under the former president Jacob Zuma. Zuma is accused of allowing an entire decade of rampant corruption to take place before he resigned in shame in 2018.
As a culture permeated all levels of government, there were many stories of politicians being bribed in exchange for their influence or lucrative contracts with the state. South Africans were told how senior ANC officials allegedly received money for expensive suits, lavish parties or home renovations.
One of the many incidents that infuriated the country was the disappearance of 15 million dollars meant to remove asbestos from poor people’s homes. Cyril Ramaphosa had promised to clean up ANC after Zuma’s death, but he got involved in his own scandal. He survived an impeachment motion.
The ANC has not recovered its reputation.
Since Mandela stepped down from his position as president after a single term in 1999, the ANC has suffered due to internal conflicts.
Zuma’s destabilization of his position as head of the ANC forced Mbeki to step down. Zuma was disqualified to run in the election next week after allegations of corruption became overwhelming.
Ramaphosa’s first term as President since 2019 has been spent fighting a faction of his party that is still loyal to Zuma. In its early years, the ANC was proud to be a “wide church” of people who were dedicated to freedom. It has now developed factions, just like any other party. This affects its ability to solve South Africa’s problems.
The ANC, which once commanded 70 percent of the votes, has gradually lost support, particularly among a younger generation of South Africans that don’t recall apartheid.
Recent polls show that the ANC has less than 50% support, which suggests it could lose its parliamentary majority for the first.
The ANC will still be expected to be the largest party. However, if it drops below 50%, then it would have to form a coalition with other parties.
This would be the largest political shift since the ANC ascended to power in South Africa and a humbling experience for a party Zuma said would rule until “Jesus comes back.”
___
AP Africa news: https://apnews.com/hub/africa
Source: ABC News