Mbeki’s proposed National Dialogue – A political ‘dead cat strategy?’

It is still uncertain whether the National Dialogue proposed by former South African President Thabo Mbeki differs from the initiative advocated by United Democratic Movement party leader General Holomisa, or if it is merely a political tactic with no real substance, writes Bongani Mankewu.

The harsh social realities South Africans endured engendered persistent pertinent questions about the outcomes of the post-1994 negotiation settlement for a new South Africa.

Is the system sustainable for the South African populace, or are South African politics failing to function? This is the question that keeps coming up. Four calls, either intentionally or accidentally, serve as discussion points for clarification of this submission:

1. President Thabo Mbeki outlined the issues that beset democratic South Africa, ruled by the African National Congress (ANC) since 1994, to clear the path for the prosperous posterity of the country. He also called for an inclusive dialogue with civil society organizations, politicians, businesses, labour, and other stakeholders to discuss
   potential solutions.
2. The Democratic Alliance’s appeal to foreign powerful countries that were former slave masters to oversee our artificial democracy concedes to the fact that our institutions are the importation of the West.
3. The uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP) dispels for Africans the myth of illiberal democracy, which emerged from the shame of some political parties’ alliance with capitalists in South Africa, where the latter had a slave Landen disposition. This explains why the MKP so infuriates the DA—it advocates African unity through governance rooted in African culture.
4. General Bantubonke Holomisa, the leader of the United Democratic Movement, has been outspoken and unflinching in his criticism of two issues: corruption and the necessity for an economic CODESA.

The DA made itself clear about the mistrust of the established institutional framework South Africa put in place after 1994. In this regard, it emphasizes that Western countries’ oversight is vital for the system to function effectively, especially during the crucial democratic election season.

As such, MKP-backed Africanist groups are willing to yield to Democratic Alliance pressure and ask for a constitutional review to reconsider the 1994 Settlement Pact.

African provenance characteristics must be unapologetically reflected in South African institutions, according to MKP.

Attending to the Former President’s National Dialogue one couldn’t fail to think about Gore Vidal where he stated “As societies grow decadent, the language grows decadent, too. Words are used to disguise, not to illuminate, action: you liberate a city by destroying it. Words are to confuse, so that at election time people will solemnly vote against their own interests.”

Additionally, it is difficult not to associate the Former Presidents’ national dialogue with a red herring fallacy – in political strategy, it is called a ‘dead cat strategy‘.

Recently, the President uttered words that could be summarized as “ANC is a syndicate of criminals” therefore, he would find it challenging to ask people for their votes for the cult of criminals.

The ruse lies in the dead cat approach to electioneering.

However, there is a logical truth attached to this improbable announcement. The former president practically acknowledges that South Africa was not meant to be the deformed baby it became after 1994.

The harsh disparities caused by Apartheid that disproportionately affected the majority of South Africans cannot be effectively addressed by the post-1994 system.

As a result of South Africa’s different approaches to democracy and development, private, unelected parties may undercut the government’s hegemony.

President Mbeki repeatedly warned the nation about the perils of a neoliberal project in which private companies provide social welfare. General Holomisa was undoubtedly troubled by these facts, which demonstrated that the current system is incapable of correcting the imbalances left by the perfidious Apartheid regime.

The child was therefore born prematurely, necessitating the development of economic organs to realize the full potential of the individual.

The credibility of Holomisa’s proposition comes from his consistency and persistence in timing.

Looking at the sample of these four powerful figures in South Africa’s democracy, it is easy to conclude that sacredness was expected, even though the fundamentals of the post-1994 system were flawed.

The MKP claims the post-1994 system misrepresents South African values, cultural orientation, and land ownership patterns.

Without a doubt, both Mbeki and the DA are aware of how the institution’s dysfunctional governance impedes the country’s development and imperils its future prosperity.

Given their individual histories, President Mbeki and General Holomisa should have the foresight to argue that progressive, innovative, and hybrid African social norms should be pursued in South Africa instead of pseudo-
politicians swayed by plutocratic interests and trading on reforms to the very system that fall short of addressing the inequalities of the past systems.

The measure of these initiatives’ success is the point at which the tyrants in boardrooms and bankers are dissuaded from controlling the economy through debt-ridden consumption strategies designed to achieve the neo-slavery of South African indigenous people.

Consequently, there are clear signs that post-1994 South Africa is un-African, unable to undo the injustices caused by the vile Apartheid system, and possibly harmful to South Africa’s gradually developing unity.

The opinions expressed in this publication are those of the author. They do not purport to reflect the opinions or views of Kasi Voice News.