GARETH VAN ONSELEN: The ANC’s loss of informal power
Cyril Ramaphosa wants the presidency to be the ‘heartbeat’ of a capable state but it can only ever be a pacemaker — there to keep an actual heart attack in check
Formal power in a democracy rests in votes received. The greater your support, the greater the power an administration can wield. In turn, formal power creates informal power — a perception of control and authority that extends beyond the rules and regulations. When the two are aligned, a party like the ANC is at its most dangerous.
By that logic, the ANC was at its most powerful in 2004, when it secured an astonishing 69.7%. Because it was united, it could stamp its authority on every aspect of life. And it did. In 2019, it managed just 57.5%, a drop of 12.2 percentage points over 15 years. It stands now, divided and incompetent, unable to impose itself on anything...
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