Big daddy state not conducive to sustainable development and empowerment

The first time I saw a R20 note was in 1993 when I was six-years-old and we were living in Swaziland. I stumbled upon it in the garden and my mother said I could have it. Elated, I impatiently awaited the regular daily passing of the “sucker lady” (our then-version of Madam & Eve’s Mielie Lady, with an equally high pitched voice), and bought suckers and chips for the neighbourhood’s children.

Today, eighteen years later, R20 won’t even get me two litres of petrol or a pack of cigarettes. The woes of the suburban middle class and inflation.

Normally my fiancé takes care of buying the groceries, but today as I was buying milk (R14,99 for two litres) I was reminded yet again of the unfortunate choices the majority of South Africans are faced with on a daily basis.

With the price of milk, bread and other basic items ever-increasing, most of us on this platform do not have to blink twice before taking out a few extra cents to buy these items that are commonplace in our households.

I was reminded again of an encounter a friend had in a general dealer in the rural Eastern Cape. He recollected seeing an older lady, a grandmother, buying a loaf of bread and milk. At the cashier she was informed that she did not have enough money and was forced to choose between either the bread or the milk.

Her tale is not an unfamiliar, or uncommon one. With a conservatively estimated unemployment rate of 23,3%¹ and 50% of the population living below the poverty line², it is deceptive to speak of adequate nutrition, let alone socioeconomic conditions conducive to effective education, productive employment or cohesive and stable communities in a South Africa that supposedly “belongs to all who live in it”.

Unfortunately local government in South Africa equally fails dismally in creating an environment conducive to empowering communities effectively to be at the forefront of driving their own sustainable development.

Instead of local governance through meaningful partnership, the mantra to-date — and from both the ANC and DA — has been local government through a condescending “Big Daddy state” of handouts and freebies that will take care of its helpless and ignorant citizens.

Local government, at least according to the Congress of the People (Cope), should be about local issues, local solutions, and above all, local people in their community who take charge of their own destiny and future. The alternative, and politicised Big Daddy approach, has established a culture of dependency on the state with ruling parties in councils stifling local participation and innovation in favour of a paternalistic approach to local government.

Unfortunately service delivery protests in both ANC and DA-controlled municipalities stand as a testament to a culture of dependency and expectations on the part of citizens. Lack of consultation; a lack of meaningful, regular and democratic participation in local decision making; and a general crisis management and reactive approach to local issues and problems has eroded trust in this sphere of government and forced those who can afford it to seek basic services through the private sector.

Similarly, ruling parties in our councils fail to understand that different needs and interests of vastly different communities within our municipalities do not confer varying degrees of value on its residents. The need for clean water, basic and dignified sanitation, electricity and adequate housing is not inferior to the needs of the tax-rich suburbs, and vice-versa.

Both the concerns of the impoverished and the middle and upper classes — clean parks, adequately maintained infrastructure such as roads, water pipes, libraries, town halls and public transport services — fall within the scope of the constitutional duties and responsibilities of a municipal council.

I guess it is to be expected in a country where politicians sadly speak of the “black vote”, the “white vote” and the “coloured vote” as if skin colour determines the value of your vote, which in turn, Manyi-style, is determined by the law of supply and demand.

The real change required in local government demands a paradigm shift that places partnership and participation at a premium, that exudes accountability, transparency and accessibility, and is driven by consultation and responsiveness.

It is for this reason that I will be proudly campaigning under the Cope banner as the Ward 65 candidate in Tshwane, endorsing the party’s manifesto that outlines mechanisms to ensure the above, and initiatives that will undoubtedly drive sustainable development through mutual partnership.

Notes:
¹ CIA World Factbook, 2010 est.
² CIA World Factbook, 2000 est.