Will the ANC be a good opposition party?

Tony — Thu, 23 Apr 2009 11:59:12 +0000

How is the African National Congress going to Swim against the stream? (Ilker)

The DA (Democratic Alliance) looks like it is going to win a majority in the Western Cape Provincial Legislature. And it will rule, either by itself or with one or more of the smaller parties as a coalition partner/s. This puts the ANC (African National Congress) in the strange and new (for them) position of being the opposition at the provincial level of government. How will they react to this new world?

The ANC has not been in opposition (except at the Local Government level in some towns and cities across South Africa) for 15 years. The style of opposition that it provided 15 years ago is not the style that is required in the modern democratic South Africa. There is no need for the violence and retaliation that marked the last years of apartheid. There is no need for using the trade unions to cause civil disturbances. There is no need for trumped up charges. There is no need for drawn out legal wranglings over every piece of legislation. The DA will have been elected to power in the Western Cape through a democratic election with universal suffrage and therefore deserve an ANC opposition that reflects, and is in-keeping with, a modern democratic state.

Could the ANC point out the problems of the DA provincial government in a way that is non-confrontational? Could the ANC compliment a DA provincial government when they do something well that is on the agenda of both parties? Could they, hopefully, not use the might of central government to ram through power grabbing or populist policies aimed at winning the next elections?

And finally, can there be a bit of quid pro quo? Could the DA limit some of the over the top rhetoric and attacks on the ANC, especially Jacob Zuma? Will the DA, likely to still be the official National opposition occasionally actually praise them, or maybe even just some of the ANC people in government.

What is the penetration of newspaper readership …

Tony — Tue, 07 Apr 2009 12:10:31 +0000

Newspaper (sanja gjenero)

… in the townships? Can anyone one provide a little information on this? This is a group of people that, from the outside at least, that seem to have a lot of time on their hands as they travel the miles and miles to and from work everyday in a variety of taxis, trains and buses in what is one of the worst of all the legacies of apartheid.

Where do they receive their news from? Newspapers? Cellphones? Word of mouth? Radio? Television? Internet? How reliable is this form of news? Do they have access to sufficient different sources of news? Can this time be used for more than just assimilating the news? Is there an educational opportunity here?

The basis of all the politically stable and economically growing countries is education and the free flow of ideas. And good newspapers enhance that flow of ideas. Maybe this could be a source of revenue for people whereby they create small community based newspapers that concentrate on the community and local news, without a partisan bias.

The Southern Tip» apartheid

Will the ANC be a good opposition party?

What is the penetration of newspaper readership …