Global Economic Intersection
Advertisement
  • Home
    • 카지노사이트
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Politics
  • Investments
    • Invest in Amazon $250
  • Cryptocurrency
    • Best Bitcoin Accounts
    • Bitcoin Robot
      • Quantum AI
      • Bitcoin Era
      • Bitcoin Aussie System
      • Bitcoin Profit
      • Bitcoin Code
      • eKrona Cryptocurrency
      • Bitcoin Up
      • Bitcoin Prime
      • Yuan Pay Group
      • Immediate Profit
      • BitQH
      • Bitcoin Loophole
      • Crypto Boom
      • Bitcoin Treasure
      • Bitcoin Lucro
      • Bitcoin System
      • Oil Profit
      • The News Spy
      • Bitcoin Buyer
      • Bitcoin Inform
      • Immediate Edge
      • Bitcoin Evolution
      • Cryptohopper
      • Ethereum Trader
      • BitQL
      • Quantum Code
      • Bitcoin Revolution
      • British Trade Platform
      • British Bitcoin Profit
    • Bitcoin Reddit
    • Celebrities
      • Dr. Chris Brown Bitcoin
      • Teeka Tiwari Bitcoin
      • Russell Brand Bitcoin
      • Holly Willoughby Bitcoin
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
    • 카지노사이트
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Politics
  • Investments
    • Invest in Amazon $250
  • Cryptocurrency
    • Best Bitcoin Accounts
    • Bitcoin Robot
      • Quantum AI
      • Bitcoin Era
      • Bitcoin Aussie System
      • Bitcoin Profit
      • Bitcoin Code
      • eKrona Cryptocurrency
      • Bitcoin Up
      • Bitcoin Prime
      • Yuan Pay Group
      • Immediate Profit
      • BitQH
      • Bitcoin Loophole
      • Crypto Boom
      • Bitcoin Treasure
      • Bitcoin Lucro
      • Bitcoin System
      • Oil Profit
      • The News Spy
      • Bitcoin Buyer
      • Bitcoin Inform
      • Immediate Edge
      • Bitcoin Evolution
      • Cryptohopper
      • Ethereum Trader
      • BitQL
      • Quantum Code
      • Bitcoin Revolution
      • British Trade Platform
      • British Bitcoin Profit
    • Bitcoin Reddit
    • Celebrities
      • Dr. Chris Brown Bitcoin
      • Teeka Tiwari Bitcoin
      • Russell Brand Bitcoin
      • Holly Willoughby Bitcoin
No Result
View All Result
Global Economic Intersection
No Result
View All Result

Protests Soar Amid Unmet Expectations in South Africa

admin by admin
June 2, 2015
in Uncategorized
0
0
SHARES
3
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

by Sethulego Matebesi, The Conversation

It is ironic that South Africa, which only a few years ago was hailed for peacefully overcoming centuries of repression, conflict, bitterness and division, is today the protest capital of the world.

Protests reached unprecedented levels in 2014, peaking at 185 during the year. This came a decade after the first dramatic eruption of protests at the lack of the poor quality basic services in Diepsloot, a sprawling township north of Johannesburg and Harrismith, a large town 300 kms south east of the city, in September 2004.

Since then the country has witnessed an explosion of unrest at local government level with protests shooting up from about 10 a year in 2004 to 111 in 2010, 173 in 2012 and 155 in 2013.

Many of the protests have been accompanied by violence and destruction of property.

During the past year Gauteng province, the country’s economic hub, followed the Eastern Cape and Kwazulu-Natal as the most protest ridden provinces in South Africa.

What’s driving people onto the streets

In most instances the cycle is being sustained by unresolved issues, particularly the slow pace in translating political freedom into tangible benefits for the vast majority of the country’s previously marginalised majority black population.

The protests are typically directed against a local municipality over the lack of services like water and electricity. The spark can also come from a wider range of problems such as inadequate housing as well as public sector corruption.

These tensions are compounded by allegations from more than 10 case studies in areas across South Africa that the state uses dubious tactics to end the protests. Examples include providing protest leaders jobs instead of dealing with the fundamental grievances of communities.

A troubling aspect of the protests is that they often involve extensive damage to government facilities, such as offices and libraries.

This suggests that, faced with the reality that the state is generally unresponsive to demands raised through formal institutional channels, dissatisfied citizens and their organisations have increasingly sought alternative ways to express their grievances.

Communities often eschew formal channels for engagement between the state and civil society. The alternative routes chosen vary from community to community, according to social, economic and political contexts.

Why people feel ignored

Case studies conducted in the Free State, Northern Cape, North West, and Western Cape show that frustrations boil over when communities believe they have been consulted but don’t see any tangible evidence of their inputs.

Every community is able to identify development priorities through locally initiated Integrated Development Plans.

Priorities may include needs like housing, roads and sewage systems, and even the need to address rampant corruption and crime. Once these concerns and priorities are adopted as part of the municipality’s plans, communities expect a timely response to any future grievances they might have.

Protests are also being fuelled by the state`s failure to address the deficit between citizens’ rising expectations and the daily realities of abject poverty, unemployment and inequality.

Some stark figures bear this out. More than 10 million South Africans, or 20.2% of the population, live in extreme poverty. The society is one of the most unequal in the world, with the richest 20% of the population accounting for more than 64% of consumption.

Unemployment remains stubbornly high at 35%, using the expanded definition.

The ruling party has had a part to play

The African National Congress-led government is under intense pressure to change this reality and demonstrate tangible results. But its response has been to swing like a pendulum between reconciling the demands of citizens with the expectations of party members.

To satisfy party members the ANC has given preference to governing party members and acolytes for positions, a practice known as cadre deployment. This has led to a lack of accountability by local government officials. It also often meant that worthy candidates have been overlooked for crucial positions.

With the party acting as the instrument for dispensing patronage it was inevitable that political infighting within the governing party would, inadvertently, also fuel service delivery protests.

It is not a practice the ANC is about to stop. The clearest indication that it will continue employing officials based on their links with the party came in a recent statement by the Premier of the Free State province, Ace Magashule. “We [the ANC] are not ashamed of cadre deployment. We will continue to implement it without fail.”

Steps taken to address the problem

The government has taken several steps to address the daily concerns that give rise to the protests. This includes the establishment of the inter-ministerial service delivery task team. The purpose of this task team is to fast-track service delivery and enable the state to respond quickly to areas that encounter problems.

The appointment of former finance minister Pravin Gordhan as Minister of Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs which local government was a step in the right direction. His performance in previous government portfolios has been sterling. This includes being credited with turning the South African Revenue Services into a pocket of excellence.

But to date attempts to deal with problems have been met with widespread disapproval and resistance from municipal officials, who are often ANC members. This has rendered hollow government pronouncements about a commitment to a transparent and accountable local government system.

Gordhan has a tough mountain to climb. His ministry has to tackle nepotism, cadre deployment, rampant corruption, and above all, government officials who are doing business with municipalities.

Will he succeed in his goal of fixing the problems? Pressure will be mounting in the run up to municipal elections next year.

Strong local structures needed

Re-invigorating local governance structures at local level will go a long way in providing communities the much-needed platforms to air their grievances.

As Machado and colleagues correctly argue, where institutions are strong, people are more likely to participate in the political process through formal institution. Where they are weak, protests and other unconventional means of participation become more appealing.

The ConversationSethulego Matebesi is Senior Lecturer, Sociology at University of the Free State.

This article was originally published on The Conversation. Read the original article.

Previous Post

June 1 Weather and Climate Report – NOAA Issues June Update – A bit wetter and warmer

Next Post

Early Headlines: Climate Change Will Disrupt Marine Life, New Record U.S. M&A Volume, Snowden Getting Some Credit on Capitol Hill, Emergency Summit on Greece, China Cruise Boat Capsizes and More

Related Posts

Unlocking the Future: Google's Game-Changing Move to Advertise NFT Games Starting September 15th
Business

Unlocking the Future: Google’s Game-Changing Move to Advertise NFT Games Starting September 15th

by John Wanguba
September 8, 2023
Bitcoin Is Finally Trading Perfectly Like 'Digital Gold'
Economics

Bitcoin Is Finally Trading Perfectly Like ‘Digital Gold’

by John Wanguba
August 5, 2023
Can Worldcoin Overtake Bitcoin?
Economics

Can Worldcoin Overtake Bitcoin?

by John Wanguba
August 4, 2023
Bitcoin Is Steady Above $29,000 Awaiting US NFP Figures
Economics

Bitcoin Is Steady Above $29,000 Awaiting US NFP Figures

by John Wanguba
August 4, 2023
Namibia Will Regulate And Not Ban Crypto With New Law
Finance

Namibia Will Regulate And Not Ban Crypto With New Law

by John Wanguba
July 25, 2023
Next Post

Early Headlines: Climate Change Will Disrupt Marine Life, New Record U.S. M&A Volume, Snowden Getting Some Credit on Capitol Hill, Emergency Summit on Greece, China Cruise Boat Capsizes and More

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Browse by Category

  • Business
  • Econ Intersect News
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Politics
  • Uncategorized

Browse by Tags

adoption altcoins bank banking banks Binance Bitcoin Bitcoin market blockchain BTC BTC price business China crypto crypto adoption cryptocurrency crypto exchange crypto market crypto regulation decentralized finance DeFi Elon Musk ETH Ethereum Europe Federal Reserve finance FTX inflation investment market analysis Metaverse NFT nonfungible tokens oil market price analysis recession regulation Russia stock market technology Tesla the UK the US Twitter

Archives

  • September 2023
  • August 2023
  • July 2023
  • June 2023
  • May 2023
  • April 2023
  • March 2023
  • February 2023
  • January 2023
  • December 2022
  • November 2022
  • October 2022
  • September 2022
  • August 2022
  • July 2022
  • June 2022
  • May 2022
  • April 2022
  • March 2022
  • February 2022
  • January 2022
  • December 2021
  • November 2021
  • October 2021
  • September 2021
  • August 2021
  • July 2021
  • June 2021
  • May 2021
  • April 2021
  • March 2021
  • February 2021
  • January 2021
  • December 2020
  • November 2020
  • October 2020
  • September 2020
  • August 2020
  • July 2020
  • June 2020
  • May 2020
  • April 2020
  • March 2020
  • February 2020
  • January 2020
  • December 2019
  • November 2019
  • October 2019
  • September 2019
  • August 2019
  • July 2019
  • June 2019
  • May 2019
  • April 2019
  • March 2019
  • February 2019
  • January 2019
  • December 2018
  • November 2018
  • October 2018
  • September 2018
  • August 2018
  • July 2018
  • June 2018
  • May 2018
  • April 2018
  • March 2018
  • February 2018
  • January 2018
  • December 2017
  • November 2017
  • October 2017
  • September 2017
  • August 2017
  • July 2017
  • June 2017
  • May 2017
  • April 2017
  • March 2017
  • February 2017
  • January 2017
  • December 2016
  • November 2016
  • October 2016
  • September 2016
  • August 2016
  • July 2016
  • June 2016
  • May 2016
  • April 2016
  • March 2016
  • February 2016
  • January 2016
  • December 2015
  • November 2015
  • October 2015
  • September 2015
  • August 2015
  • July 2015
  • June 2015
  • May 2015
  • April 2015
  • March 2015
  • February 2015
  • January 2015
  • December 2014
  • November 2014
  • October 2014
  • September 2014
  • August 2014
  • July 2014
  • June 2014
  • May 2014
  • April 2014
  • March 2014
  • February 2014
  • January 2014
  • December 2013
  • November 2013
  • October 2013
  • September 2013
  • August 2013
  • July 2013
  • June 2013
  • May 2013
  • April 2013
  • March 2013
  • February 2013
  • January 2013
  • December 2012
  • November 2012
  • October 2012
  • September 2012
  • August 2012
  • July 2012
  • June 2012
  • May 2012
  • April 2012
  • March 2012
  • February 2012
  • January 2012
  • December 2011
  • November 2011
  • October 2011
  • September 2011
  • August 2011
  • July 2011
  • June 2011
  • May 2011
  • April 2011
  • March 2011
  • February 2011
  • January 2011
  • December 2010
  • August 2010
  • August 2009

Categories

  • Business
  • Econ Intersect News
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Politics
  • Uncategorized
Global Economic Intersection

After nearly 11 years of 24/7/365 operation, Global Economic Intersection co-founders Steven Hansen and John Lounsbury are retiring. The new owner, a global media company in London, is in the process of completing the set-up of Global Economic Intersection files in their system and publishing platform. The official website ownership transfer took place on 24 August.

Categories

  • Business
  • Econ Intersect News
  • Economics
  • Finance
  • Politics
  • Uncategorized

Recent Posts

  • Unlocking the Future: Google’s Game-Changing Move to Advertise NFT Games Starting September 15th
  • Bitcoin Is Finally Trading Perfectly Like ‘Digital Gold’
  • Can Worldcoin Overtake Bitcoin?

© Copyright 2021 EconIntersect - Economic news, analysis and opinion.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Contact Us
  • Bitcoin Robot
    • Bitcoin Profit
    • Bitcoin Code
    • Quantum AI
    • eKrona Cryptocurrency
    • Bitcoin Up
    • Bitcoin Prime
    • Yuan Pay Group
    • Immediate Profit
    • BitIQ
    • Bitcoin Loophole
    • Crypto Boom
    • Bitcoin Era
    • Bitcoin Treasure
    • Bitcoin Lucro
    • Bitcoin System
    • Oil Profit
    • The News Spy
    • British Bitcoin Profit
    • Bitcoin Trader
  • Bitcoin Reddit

© Copyright 2021 EconIntersect - Economic news, analysis and opinion.