LETTER: German-type political system would boost parliament

One of  the most trenchant recommendations of the Zondo state capture commission is that SA move to a mixed constituency/ proportional parliamentary system.

Justice Raymond Zondo pointed out that we cannot (without amending the constitution) simply adopt a constituency system as the constitution enjoins a proportional system at national level.

The German system bears consideration. Party candidates stand in constituencies, and the first past the post gains the seat. However, voters cast two ballots: one for the preferred candidate in the constituency and the second for a party. Should a party gain more seats than its share of the proportional vote, the successful candidates retain their seats but the "overhang" is applied to award additional seats to the other parties, awarded from party lists. The ultimate result is that each party gets seats in the Bundestag (the German Parliament) in alignment with  their share of the total proportional vote.

There is every reason for SA to adopt this system. The many advantages include: direct representation of the voters in each constituency; less party control over members; and candidates making themselves and their policies known to the voters. To avoid a proliferation of small parties a threshold of say 5% of the proportional vote could be required for a party to qualify for overhang seats.

This system would mean that the number of members of parliament will fluctuate upwards, dependent on the divergence of constituency seats from the proportional vote. To accommodate this upward fluctuation we could create say 300 constituencies (as compared to the present 400 seats).

Adopting a German-type system should not require a constitutional change. It would enhance political accountability and strengthen parliament. It would bring parliament closer to the people, and it would preserve a healthy  balance of power between the majority and minority parties.

Willem Cronje
Cape Town

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