scholarly journals An analysis of the declining support for the ANC during the 2011 South African local government elections

2012 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
C Twala
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Voter Turnout ◽  
Majority Vote ◽  
Careful Analysis ◽  
African National Congress ◽  
National Elections ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
Registered Voters

Local government elections are notorious for low voter turnout, but the May 2011 elections in South Africa showed a record 58 percent of the 24 million registered voters. In South Africa, local government matters and not just because it provides a pointer to what might happen in the provincial and national elections due in 2014, but helps in determining the readiness of the African Nation Congress in providing basic services to the different communities. Interestingly, these elections were preceded by service delivery protests against the ANC. The article is an analysis of the decreased support for the ANC during the 2011 local government elections. The multifaceted reasons behind the boiling cauldron of this decline in support for the ANC are scrutinised. Underpinning this decline in support often lie deep and complex factors which can be uncovered through a careful analysis of the ANC’s campaigning strategies ahead of these elections; the media which has been accused of rampant sensationalism; service delivery protests and mudslinging from other political parties. However, it is not the author’s intention in this article to deal with how other parties fared during these elections, but to highlight their impact on the declined support received by the ANC in the elections. The discussion is presented in four parts: the first presents an exploratory discussion on the theory of local government in the sphere of governance. The second part discusses some key strategies and tactics used by the ANC in attempts to galvanise support, as well as the challenges encountered. The third deals with the opposition parties’ machinery in preventing the ANC from getting a majority vote during the election. Lastly, the article concludes by highlighting the lessons learnt by the ANC during these elections within the framework of electoral politics in South Africa.Keywords: local election 2011, African National Congress (ANC), local government. Disciplines: History, political science, electoral studies

Municipal financing for sustainable development: A case of South Africa

2018 ◽  
Vol 33 (7) ◽  
pp. 757-774
Author(s):  
CJ Hendriks
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Sustainable Development ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Sustainable Development Goals ◽  
Financial Resources ◽  
Budget Process ◽  
The Sustainable Development ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
Development Goals

This article explores the financing of the sustainable development goals through the budget process with the aim of achieving sustainable development. Existing theory points out that local government budgets play an important role in pro-poor service delivery. However, underfunding can be seen across all areas in South Africa, resulting in municipalities that cannot function properly and look after the needs of their inhabitants. Based on a study of selected municipalities in South Africa, this paper tries to answer the question of whether municipalities allocate and spend their financial resources to pursue the 17 sustainable development goals. The findings indicate that as the medium for achieving the sustainable development goals, the focus of local government budgets has to shift from merely providing basic services to creating and facilitating an environment suitable for achieving sustainable development. If the emphasis of municipal spending does not change, governments will find it difficult to achieve the sustainable development goals.

scholarly journals Local service delivery enhancement – attitudes: a case study of the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality

2010 ◽  
Vol 6 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Israel Tsatsire ◽  
John Derek Taylor ◽  
Kishore Raga
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Institutional Capacity ◽  
Local Service ◽  
Empirical Survey ◽  
Nelson Mandela ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
The Republic

In this article, the new developmental mandate as s igned to local government is reviewed using the Nelson Mandela Bay Municipality (hereafter referred to as the NMBM) as a case study. The concept of developmental local government is of cardinal importance as it imposes additional specific obligations on municipal councils. In addition, the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa, 1996 (hereafter referred to as the Constitution) requires local government to render quality, affordable and sustainable basic services. Therefore, councillors are now required to meet specific Constitutional and other developmental legislative prescriptions pertaining to their communities and areas of jurisdiction.An empirical survey was conducted at the NMBM to test selected senior officials and councillors’ attitudinal responses to service delivery and the new developmental mandate as s igned to local government. The survey intended to es tabl ish whether there was institutional capacity to enhance basic service delivery. These findings are elaborated upon in this article.

scholarly journals The impact of corruption on service delivery: a topical matter in the South African Municipalities

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (01) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mabeba SJ ◽  
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
South African ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Secondary Data ◽  
The South ◽  
Basic Services ◽  
The Republic ◽  
The Impact

One of the topical challenges facing South African municipalities recently is corruption. From time-to-time citizens learn about and witness the corrupt practices of public officials in the Local Government sphere. Arguably, the phenomenon of corruption has both direct and indirect impact on service delivery with specific focus to municipalities. Section 152(1) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa (1996) states that the Local Government sphere has the mandate to ensure the provision of services to communities in a sustainable manner. Subsequently, some of the communities across the country still wish to have access to basic services namely: water, electricity, community halls and proper tar roads to name a few. As a result, at times it seems impossible for municipalities to smoothly render such services due to corrupt practices emanating in the South African Local Government sphere. This article aimed to explore the impact of corruption on service delivery in the South African municipalities. The article fully relied on secondary data as it collects information from newspapers, books, journal articles, conference proceedings, officials report and academic dissertations. In pursuit of all this, Afrocentricity: a theory of social change has been placed in context with a view that the needs of the society should be placed at the center of the local government sphere. To be specific, these needs are but not limited to water and electricity. Looking at the findings of the study, indeed literature can confirm that corruptions have negative impact on the ability of the municipalities in South Africa to provide basic services. Because the interests of the public are competing with those of the municipal officials. Therefore, at the end of the day service delivery is compromised due unlawful practices.

scholarly journals The End of the ANC Era: An Analysis of Corruption and Inequality in South Africa

2017 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Olivia Lannegren ◽  
Hiroshi Ito
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
African National Congress ◽  
African Countries ◽  
National Elections ◽  
Difficult Situation ◽  
South Africans ◽  
Clear Sign ◽  
National Congress ◽  
Political Turmoil

ANC would always rule in South Africa, the African National Congress (ANC), which has been governing the country since the end of apartheid in 1994, received the worst results ever recorded. The ANC with president Jacob Zuma received 54 percent of the votes, which is a considerable decrease from 62 percent in 2011. This election was a clear sign that the ANC is in trouble towards the 2019 elections. The party seriously needs to rethink its strategies and investigates why the votes are decreasing. Given South Africa being a key player in global governance and in particular a strong leader among the African countries, it is significant to understand this political turmoil, as it may influence the political directions of other countries in that area. With reviews of relevant literature, therefore, this paper analyzes the current political situation in South Africa, focusing on corruption and inequality. The paper suggests connections between corruption, Jacob Zuma, and the potential end of the ANC era. The issues of inequality describes more the difficult situation that South Africans are facing and can be connected to the desire for change. It would be interesting to further analyze whether South Africa would be ready for a multiparty democracy with a peaceful transition of power after the national elections in 2019.

The Paradox of (De)politicisation in a Selected South African Municipality: An Afrocentric Ethical Reflection

Politeia ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 38 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kgothatso B. Shai
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Rural Areas ◽  
Urban Areas ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
African National Congress ◽  
Limpopo Province ◽  
African Culture ◽  
Government Administration ◽  
Traditional Leadership

South Africa’s local government administration is complex in that both traditional leadership and elected municipal councils play a role in it. Traditional leadership occupies an essential position and status in local government administration, in particular in rural South Africa. However, the contemporary administrative jurisdiction of municipalities cuts across both rural and urban areas. In the rural areas, the conflict over the division of roles between traditional leaders and elected councillors is evident. Due to the influence and dominance of the neo-liberal global order, modernists often accuse traditional leadership of being undemocratic and authoritarian. However, the reality is that elected councils’ administration also leaves much to be desired, and the consequences of their poor administration are not uniformly understood. Since South Africa is a democratic state, it is expected that there should be a clear separation in government institutions between party (i.e., the ruling African National Congress) politics and public administration; a phenomenon that some describe as depoliticisation. Nevertheless, the realities on the ground suggest otherwise. This article, which is based on the theory of Afrocentricity, examines a selected rural municipality (Maruleng) in South Africa’s Limpopo province to critically reflect on the ethics and the value system of African culture in the context of local governance vis-à-vis Westernised governance principles. The aim of this research is achieved through interdisciplinary critical discourse and thematic analysis in its broadest form.

Political-Administrative Interface at the Local Sphere of Government with Particular Reference to South Africa

2017 ◽  
pp. 242-255
Author(s):  
Purshottama Sivanarain Reddy
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
National Development ◽  
Critical Issue ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Transformation ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Government Legislation

The ongoing political-administrative dichotomy discourse, which is steeped in public administration history, manifests in uncertainty about how the relationship between politicians and administrative officials should be structured. South Africa was democratized in 1994 and local government has subsequently undergone a fundamental socio-political transformation. “World class” local government legislation, with an entrenched constitutional development mandate, was introduced; however, the large numbers of public protests bear ample testimony to major challenges in basic service delivery. A critical issue impacting negatively on the functionality of the post-1994 local government dispensation is the political-administrative interface. The National Development Plan has mapped out a socio-economic vision to 2030, with stabilization of the political-administrative interface a priority. Consequently, the political-administrative interface has to be critically reviewed relative to the quality of local democracy, impact on efficient and effective service delivery, and good local governance.

Political-Administrative Interface at the Local Sphere of Government With Particular Reference to South Africa

2019 ◽  
pp. 1362-1375
Author(s):  
Purshottama Sivanarain Reddy
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Local Government ◽  
Service Delivery ◽  
Local Governance ◽  
National Development ◽  
Critical Issue ◽  
The Political ◽  
Political Transformation ◽  
Large Numbers ◽  
Government Legislation

The ongoing political-administrative dichotomy discourse, which is steeped in public administration history, manifests in uncertainty about how the relationship between politicians and administrative officials should be structured. South Africa was democratized in 1994 and local government has subsequently undergone a fundamental socio-political transformation. “World class” local government legislation, with an entrenched constitutional development mandate, was introduced; however, the large numbers of public protests bear ample testimony to major challenges in basic service delivery. A critical issue impacting negatively on the functionality of the post-1994 local government dispensation is the political-administrative interface. The National Development Plan has mapped out a socio-economic vision to 2030, with stabilization of the political-administrative interface a priority. Consequently, the political-administrative interface has to be critically reviewed relative to the quality of local democracy, impact on efficient and effective service delivery, and good local governance.

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