The Lack of Internal Party Democracy in the African National Congress: A Threat to the Consolidation of Democracy in South Africa<sup>*</sup>

Lotshwao, Kebapetse

doi:10.1080/03057070903313244

Cited by 13 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…Within the blurred lines between the ANC party and the state, this paper provides evidence which supports the assertions made by scholars that the ANC regional executive committee attempts to control the agenda of policy decision-making through micro-management of councillors (Lotshwao 2009;Piper and Anciano 2015;Piper and Deacon 2015) and politically appointed municipal bureaucrats (De Visser 2010;Cameron 2010). While ANC regional structures have subordinated municipal structures, such as the municipal mayoral executive committee, into taking collective decisions that show loyalty for the party, this paper argues that loyalty and cooperation comes with a significant degree of resistance and unwillingness, which generate tensions between the "two centres of power" (Reddy 2014) i.e.…”

Section: Anc Party and State Conflationsupporting

confidence: 63%

Provincial–regional ANC politics in the Northern Cape: corruption or everyday informal practices?

Nzo

2017

CJLG

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Research over the last decade on local government in South Africa has highlighted that some municipal councils under the political leadership of the Africa National Congress (ANC) have shown weak political leadership, coupled with strong patronage systems, rent-seeking and corruption which have had an impact on the institutional functionality of municipalities in South Africa. Although patronage politics have been predominantly used to analyse the dynamics of post-apartheid local government ANC politics and councillor representation, this prevents us from understanding the representational focus of ANC councillors in decision-making processes. This paper offers an ethnographic insight into experiences of ANC councillors and the political complexities involved in council decision-making. Using ethnographic research, this paper will analyse how a political decision by the ANC provincial party, which was supported by the ANC regional party at local level – to erect a statue of Nelson Mandela in one of the municipalities in the Northern Cape – generated tensions amongst ANC councillors who strongly viewed their primary role as promoters of better ‘service delivery’ rather than approving the allocation of scarce municipal resources for erecting a statue. The paper reveals how the dominant presence of ANC sub-regional structures at local level contribute to the complex interaction of both ANC party political and municipal organisational rules and norms that influence and shape councillors’ choices in decision-making.

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Section: Anc Party and State Conflationsupporting

confidence: 63%

Provincial–regional ANC politics in the Northern Cape: corruption or everyday informal practices?

Nzo

2017

CJLG

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“…This organizational ethos was different from the UDF's and COSATU's more democratic and decentralized leadership within the country. However, as the exiled leadership replaced and dominated the internal leadership, its hierarchical ethos severely limited democracy within the ANC party structure in the post-transition period, and thus it constrained the quality of democracy in South Africa (Butler 2003;Lotshwao 2009;McKinley 2001). As discussed earlier, opposition organizations are more likely to show oligarchic tendencies after a transition.…”

Section: Formal Organizations Have Established Proceduresmentioning

confidence: 98%

Mass Mobilization and the Durability of New Democracies

Kadivar

2018

Am Sociol Rev

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The "elitist approach" to democratization contends that "democratic regimes that last have seldom, if ever, been instituted by mass popular actors" (Huntington 1984:212). This article subjects this observation to empirical scrutiny using statistical analyses of new democracies over the past half-century and a case study. Contrary to the elitist approach, I argue that new democracies growing out of mass mobilization are more likely to survive than are new democracies that were born amid quiescence. Survival analysis of 112 young democracies in 80 different countries based on original data shows that the longer the mobilization, the more likely the ensuing democracy is to survive. I use a case study of South Africa to investigate the mechanisms. I argue that sustained unarmed uprisings have generated the longest-lasting new democracies-largely because they are forced to develop an organizational structure, which provides a leadership cadre for the new regime, forges links between the government and society, and strengthens checks on the power of the post-transition government.

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“…The concept and definition of intra-party democracy is multipronged (see Mimpen 2007;Chinsinga and Chigona 2010;Cross and Katz 2013). However, it generally relates to transparency and inclusivity (Mimpen 2007: 2) -the extent to which political parties permit their members' participation in decision-making (Lotshwao 2009: 903), or how power is distributed within political parties (Cross 2013: 103). Among other elements, intra-party democracy comprises candidate and leadership selection (Scarrow 2005;Matlosa 2004), leadership succession, and adherence to party constitutions (Chinsinga and Chigona 2010).…”

Section: Intra-party Democracymentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is no consensus on the merits of intra-party democracy. While some consider it to be an albatross to political parties due to its tendency to weaken the power of leadership (Scarrow 2005), others extol it as a necessary tool for democratic consolidation (Lotshwao 2009). Proponents of intra-party democracy argue that it is an essential yardstick for evaluating vertical and horizontal linkages within a party (Mimpen (2007: 2).…”

Section: Intra-party Democracymentioning

confidence: 99%

Refractory Frontier: Intra-party Democracy in the Zambian Polity

Bwalya

Sichone

2018

ModAfr

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Despite the important role that intra-party democracy plays in democratic consolidation, particularly in third-wave democracies, it has not received as much attention as inter-party democracy. Based on the Zambian polity, this article uses the concept of selectocracy to explain why, to a large extent, intra-party democracy has remained a refractory frontier. Two traits of intra-party democracy are examined: leadership transitions at party president-level and the selection of political party members for key leadership positions. The present study of four political parties: United National Independence Party (UNIP), Movement for Multiparty Democracy (MMD), United Party for National Development (UPND) and Patriotic Front (PF) demonstrates that the iron law of oligarchy predominates leadership transitions and selection. Within this milieu, intertwined but fluid factors, inimical to democratic consolidation but underpinning selectocracy, are explained.

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The Lack of Internal Party Democracy in the African National Congress: A Threat to the Consolidation of Democracy in South Africa^*

Cited by 13 publications

References 0 publications

Provincial–regional ANC politics in the Northern Cape: corruption or everyday informal practices?

Provincial–regional ANC politics in the Northern Cape: corruption or everyday informal practices?

Mass Mobilization and the Durability of New Democracies

Refractory Frontier: Intra-party Democracy in the Zambian Polity

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The Lack of Internal Party Democracy in the African National Congress: A Threat to the Consolidation of Democracy in South Africa*

Cited by 13 publications

References 0 publications

Provincial–regional ANC politics in the Northern Cape: corruption or everyday informal practices?

Provincial–regional ANC politics in the Northern Cape: corruption or everyday informal practices?

Mass Mobilization and the Durability of New Democracies

Refractory Frontier: Intra-party Democracy in the Zambian Polity

Contact Info

Product

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The Lack of Internal Party Democracy in the African National Congress: A Threat to the Consolidation of Democracy in South Africa^*