Publication: The Star Issued: Date: 2005-10-28 Reporter: Sello Molekwa Reporter: Reporter:

Politics 101, Chapter 1: How Not to Rule a Nation

 

Publication 

The Star
Date 2005-10-28

Reporter

 Sello Molekwa

Web Link

www.thestar.co.za

 

The way the ANC structures and its tripartite partners have handled the Zuma issue has shown us that the alliance leaders are incapable of handling crisis situations.

While they worked together in recent years to portray the ANC as a classic example of a successful black comradeship with the people's interests at heart, in the end, they have only proven that image-dressing is easily achievable in the absence of challenging crises.

Instead of the intelligent and brilliant strategic thinkers we perceived them to be, we now have individuals who are insecure and fearsome about who will succeed who and when.

While we were led to believe they were a united front with strong succession plans, the truth is that even though they may smile together, they silently regard themselves as belonging to different factions within the ANC.

For the first time, we have learnt there are Zuma supporters within government and the tripartite alliance on the one hand, and Mbeki supporters on the other.

The likes of Zwelinzima Vavi and Fikile Mbalula need to take some leadership lessons from Zuma and Mbeki.

These two at the centre of it all, but they have been the most silent of the lot, speaking only when they understand themselves.

The Cosatu and SACP leaders have also fallen into the emotional trap.

The Zuma crisis has exposed them as vocal leaders who easily let their emotions compromise their leadership.

While we do not dismiss their allegations of a plot against Zuma, the way they went about it was amateurish. They could have easily worked together and shown the public how leaders tackle a crisis.

Instead, their tempers flew in public and they shouted damaging slurs about their own ANC leadership, confusing the public and undermining the government and head of state with impunity.

The only reason ANC will survive is because of the lack of a strong opposition. Our opposition is so weak, the tripartite alliance members still don't doubt another ANC victory in the next elections. And that is why the succession issue causes such a stir.

If we had an opposition as strong as the one in the US, the Tripartite Alliance would have destroyed any chance of the ANC winning another election.

The ANC and its allies would then have gone down in political studies textbooks as a good example of how not to rule a nation.

Sello Molekwa
New Eersterus, Pretoria

With acknowledgements to Sello Molekwa and The Star.