After the darkness
Will Cyril Ramaphosa’s ’long game’ be strong enough to rid the ANC of state capture and corruption and restore public trust in the integrity and accountability of the government?
The story of Cyril Ramaphosa’s ascent to power is not a glorious tale for the ages. The prelude was at the darkest of times for the nation, when SA was grieving the death of its founding father, Nelson Mandela. That was when the country’s romance with the ANC faded. It was also when the world stood witness to the ANC’s war with itself. On a rainy day in December 2013, the eyes of the world were on FNB Stadium in Soweto, where 90 heads of state were among the crowd for Mandela’s memorial service. Something happened that nobody foresaw. Sections of the crowd, dressed in ANC regalia, booed every time the image of the then president, Jacob Zuma, appeared on the big screens. It was not incidental or fleeting. The anger was palpable, underlined by a sense of betrayal of the values espoused by the icon to whom the world was bidding farewell. Ramaphosa, then ANC deputy president, was the master of ceremonies at the event and had to contain the commotion. He appealed several times to the crowd to quieten down. Eventually he said, in Zulu: “Don’t embarrass us, we have overseas visitors here. We can deal with present-day stuff once the visitors have gone.”
The “present-day stuff” was the unfolding political, economic and social crisis in the country.
As five and a half years passed, the crisis deepened and the rot became entrenched. On Wednesday, South Africans finally pushed back.
Millions of people had a hard talk with the political elite, particularly in the ANC, through their voting choices, with some opting not to vote.
The ANC slid below the 60% psychological barrier for the first time in 25 years of democracy, even though it held its majority nationally. It did so on the strength of Ramaphosa’s commitment to restore the rule of law and rebuild the integrity of the state.
Had any other person been leading the ANC, the party would have lost its majority, as shown by the split in national and provincial votes for the ANC. Ramaphosa has had favourable approval ratings since taking power and his Thuma Mina rallying call has engendered a positive spirit.
The election results reflect that the nation trusts him but loyalty to the ANC is steadily diminishing.
There is still no viable alternative to the ANC to govern the country. The election revealed a fragmentation of the vote, and laid bare the fact that millions of people are losing faith in the political system.
The turnout, at 65,9%, was the lowest in the democratic era and the number of spoilt ballots constituted the sixth-largest bloc among the votes cast.
Years of frustration have now boiled over, mainly from the government not listening to
After Mandela’s death, the ANC and the country coursed past Dante’s nine circles to a netherworld where the elite feed off the poor and the poor sink into hopelessness