Nation-Building and the Role of Political Parties in Nation-Building
I am writing this article at the request of my friend, Mr Lloyd Frazenburg. When I asked him why he wanted me to write this article, he replied that he is concerned for our country. Indeed, I believe many people are, including myself. Something that struck me as odd is that “nation-building” isn’t a term one hears often, especially today.
So what is nation-building? Well… it’s building a nation. More specifically, it is constructing a national identity using the power of the state. It focuses on unifying the people of a country so that it remains politically stable and viable in the long run. To me, the keywords here are “unifying the people”. I think it is fair to say that, right now, this isn’t something high on the priority list for most of our political parties. Before I continue, let me point out that I am referring mainly to the largest three political parties in South Africa, namely the African National Congress (ANC), the Democratic Alliance (DA) and the Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF).
Very recently, President Jacob Zuma (who represents the ANC) urged black people to vote, stating that “they” (read: “white people”) will take the country from “you” (read: “black people”). Around the same time, Julius Malema (who represents the EFF) told his followers and the black people of South Africa in general that Zuma is not their enemy, but that Zuma is standing between them and the enemy, that Zuma is standing in the way of reclaiming their land. Of course, the implication here is that Zuma is not the enemy, white people are. The ANC and EFF seemingly enjoy accusing the DA of being a “white party”, promoting their own parties as “black parties”. I would like to ask you, how is this unifying the people? To me, it seems that the aim in statements such as these are to divide the people of South Africa in order to gain a few quick and easy political points.
So what are political parties meant to do? How are they supposed to “build a nation”?
There are three key roles filled by political parties in a democratic country that allow nation-building to take place. Firstly, political parties are meant to suggest methods to improve and maintain the country. They are meant to come up with a “plan of action”, which they make public in the form of a manifesto. These manifestos address similar problems, in different ways. If elected into power, these manifestos then need to be implemented fairly and efficiently. And in this regard, the ANC has failed dismally over the past 22 years. Very few of the promises made in the ANC manifestos have been met (I urge you to read some of their manifestos and to ask yourself which, if any, of the promises made, they have met). In comparison, the DA has met many of the targets it set for the areas currently under its control, though not all.
Second, the parties are always meant to rule with the interest of the country and its people in mind. They are elected by the majority, to serve the whole. They are not meant to serve only those who voted for them or to serve only a certain group of people – certainly not only themselves. In this regard, the EFF have made their intent clear: if elected into power, they will only serve the needs of black people, including a desire some black people have for revenge. The ANC, by comparison, have always claimed to serve the country, but have instead left the country in an unemployment crises, with a plummeting exchange rate for the Rand, while many of the senior ANC members have become millionaires or billionaires through loopholes and even less-than-legal means.
Lastly, the different political parties are meant to keep each other in check and provide balances. They are not only meant to criticise one another, but are meant to suggest viable alternatives. In this regard, the DA has done their job: they very often criticise the ANC, the governing party, but also usually offer solutions. When the EFF criticise the ANC, they rarely suggest useful alternatives, let alone viable solutions. In a country where parliament is more evenly split (where the governing party does not have roughly a two thirds majority), this process encourages all parties involved to better themselves to maintain or gain votes. Much like the difference between a monopoly and healthy competition in retailing, the pressure of competition promotes self-improvement to remain relevant in politics.
Sadly, as any South African knows, the ANC have gradually gotten used to their seemingly unshakeable position as the governing party, and have forgotten the drive to excel. That is a large part of why corruption has become a fact of life, why the ANC are so comfortable upsetting voters with badly planned schemes like e-toll, and why faction politics within the ANC are allowed to threaten the very stability of our economy. Only in the last year of so has the massive corruption and rising discontent threatened to destabilise the ANC... who have regrettably resorted to ever-increasingly polarising statements (rather than proper reform) to draw in apathetic voters and some of the younger generation who were gravitating towards the EFF out of a desperation for change.
These three roles of political parties contribute greatly to nation-building, which in return empowers a country. I have tried to illustrate to you examples of where and how our political parties are failing us in nation-building and in large part, there is very little we can do to prevent this directly. However, we can push our political parties in the right direction, by refusing to support their rhetoric that encourages division, and by holding the political parties accountable by means of our votes, which we can deny them if they fail and shift to the parties most likely to advance us as a country.
Nation-building is mainly in the hands of the state – in the hands of parliament – but that doesn’t mean we don’t have a say. So let’s encourage one another, let us unify, and start building a great nation together, by the power of our freedom, the power of our rights, and the power of our vote.
If you found this piece informative, please consider subscribing and please share, because that is the only way my message gets out there.
Sources and other links: