Dominance of the ANC Essay Flashcards
What are the factors of the Dominance of the ANC?
- The ANC
- Other Parties
- Authoritarianism and Corruption
- The Constitutional Court
What is your background knowledge for the Dominance of the ANC?
- SA have been controlled by the ANC post-Apartheid and therefore dominate political decisions
- Apartheid is a system of segregation based on race, ended early 1990’s
- The SA Constitution came that same decade
- SA is democratic and use the Party List System which is representative and far for elections
What is your knowledge for the ANC?
- The ANC have won the most seats in the 7 post-Apartheid elections, holding a National Assembly majority from 1994-2024
- There is also a strict whip system which threatens MPs with being placed lower down on the list during the next election, lowering their chances of being elected
What are examples for the ANC?
- The ANC have held a majority for the past 30 years
What is your analysis for the ANC?
- Having a majority allows the ANC to dictate government decisions and hold control over Bills being passed
- Due to the majority and whip system there is almost no chance for the ANC to face scrutiny
What is your evaluation for the ANC?
SA cannot be indefinitely a ‘one-party’ state as people are continuing to vote for the ANC, they are free to vote for other parties if they are against the ANC.
What is your knowledge for Other Parties?
- The ANC lost their majority in 2024, winning 159 of 400 seats
- Now having to form a coalition with the DA and IFP along with other smaller partied there are now policies from these parties being implemented
- Other parties are still not close to overthrowing the ANC due to perceptions of their parties
What are examples for Other Parties?
- During the 2024 election there were 18 parties that won seats in the NA
What is your analysis for Other Parties?
- Losing their majority has forced the ANC to form a coalition with the DA, IFP, and other smaller parties which has made them less dominant which forces them to compromise and opens up chances for scrutiny
- Due to their being more parties in the NA, there is now more representation and more chances of scrutinise the government, but the ANC still remain the more dominant party
What is your evaluation for Other Parties?
While no party is read to overthrow the ANC, new parties may continue to decrease their votes as they introduce new opportunities and ideas of South Africans.
What is your knowledge for Authoritarianism and Corruption?
- The ANC’s dominance has led to them becoming more authoritarian
- The ANC has become more corrupt throughout their reign, especially under Zuma
What are examples for Authoritarianism and Corruption?
- In 2013, 24 striking miners were killed and the 259 survivors were charged with murder under an Apartheid law
- Zuma used millions of state funds to refurbish his private home
What is your analysis for Authoritarianism and Corruption?
- The striking miners incidence continues to taint Ramaphosa’s reputation due to being part of the mines at this point
- Zuma’s use of state funs make South African’s question the authenticity of the govenrment
- Still, Zuma’s removal and sentencing would not have happened if the country were not democratic
What is your evaluation for Authoritarianism and Corruption?
The ANC have continued to be what the public have wanted during elections but this has become tainted due to their rise of corrupt actions.
What is your knowledge for the Constitutional Court?
- The Constitutional Court is made up of 11 judges that are separate from the government.
What are examples for the Constitutional Court?
- In 2016 the court made Zuma repay #11 million of state funds that he used to refurbish his home
- 6 of 11 judges are currently chosen by Ramaphosa
What is your analysis for the Constitutional Court?
- The Constitutional Court have the ability to hold the government to a account through scrutiny and their constitution cross referencing of Bills
- Despite the Court being separate from the government, the president gets to appoint judges from a select list
- The selection of judges leads to questioning of the authenticity of the Court as many independent-minded judges are rejected from being part of the Court
What is your evaluation for the Constitutional Court?
The Constitutional Court have been working alongside the Anchor so long that it can cause questioning towards their legitimacy because they have been able to build a long lasting relationship.
