OPINION
John F Kennedy, the thirty fifth president of the United States of America, as soon as remarked about ideas: “a man may die, nations may rise and fall, but an idea lives on. Ideas have endurance without death”. The sentiment that ideas are enduring has been expressed by many a thinker, cementing its profundity. Indeed, there may be nothing as highly effective as an concept. And maybe greater than this, nothing as highly effective as an concept whose time has come – to cite French Romantic author, Victor Hugo. Throughout historical past, ideas have been the inspiration on which nations are constructed. Good ideas have led to revolutions that modified the world. The concept of an impartial Africa gave beginning to protracted liberation struggles that performed an essential function in liberating the continent from the death grip of colonialism. Bad ideas have additionally modified the world. The concept that the Aryan race is superior to all others led to the Holocaust by which hundreds of thousands of Jews have been killed – and continues to affect the rise of right-wing actions the world over. Kennedy was largely appropriate; besides he didn’t mirror on how the very rise and fall of nations all the time stems from ideas.
This previous weekend, as information broke in regards to the imminent resignation of Gauteng Premier David Makhura, I discovered myself interested by the worth of ideas. Over the previous few months, the African National Congress (ANC) has been holding regional and provincial conferences in preparation for the fifty fifth nationwide convention scheduled for December. The highway to many of these conferences was marred by inner preventing and instances of the organisation being taken to courtroom by its personal members. In most instances, this was performed to interdict conferences. The interdicting of conferences has grow to be one thing of a practice within the ANC. One can virtually assure that one of the warring factions, often the one with out sufficient numbers to win convention, will interdict it. If the interdict is denied, one can virtually assure that the following step is to take the organisation to courtroom to problem the result of the convention.
The in-fighting that occurs at conferences is precipitated by very intense lobbying for slates. While the 54th nationwide convention and different conferences earlier than it has resolved that the ANC should annihilate slate politics, the truth is that slates have grow to be deeply entrenched within the ANC. Some analysists have argued that the result of the Gauteng provincial convention by which the highest 5 management is comprised of people from totally different slates marks the start of the tip of slate politics. Such evaluation shouldn’t be solely untimely however it is usually not supported by the details of different provincial and regional conferences by which slates made clear sweeps. Lobbying is an intensive course of and occurs each inside and out of doors the ANC. Lobbyists not solely promote the names of most popular candidates to the organisation’s branches, however additionally they promote the names to the broader society. And herein lies the issue.
The ANC has grow to be much more invested in promoting names than it’s in promoting significant ideas. Towards its conferences, social media was bombarded with posters and campaigns for slates. After its conferences, we’re but once more discussing names of who will take over the reigns from premiers who’re being eliminated. The dominant dialogue proper now could be anchored on which two names will probably be beneficial for the following premier of the Gauteng Province. Both the media and the ANC membership is discussing this. In all of the noise, nobody is talking in regards to the ideas that may result in significant adjustments in a province that’s the nerve-centre of the regional economic system. What is the concept for dealing with the immigrant query that’s tearing the province asunder? What is the concept for resolving the fee of dwelling disaster that’s deepening city poverty? What is the concept for making certain meals safety amid the escalating Russo-Ukrainian conflict that has plunged the growing world right into a disaster of lack of entry to primary meals commodities? What is the concept for funding an power combine to make sure power safety at a time when rolling blackouts are devastating the economic system and anticipated to proceed into the summer season? What is the concept for the mixing of public transport? What is the concept for dealing with the scourge of homelessness? What is the concept for responding to city land starvation?
None of these questions, or any others about ideas, dominate discourse within the ANC. Just months earlier than its nationwide coverage convention, even some of its personal members do not need a clue what ideas the organisation is placing forth to the world. And definitely, none of us odd members of society are listening to something in regards to the ideas that the organisation is proposing for dealing with the prevailing materials circumstances and challenges that we’re confronted with within the nation. Instead, we’re being bombarded with talks about names of who will emerge within the nationwide convention, who has emerged in a provincial and regional convention, and who should change a premier. It is all about names and positions – nothing about ideas.
Many have mirrored on how the ANC is going through an existential disaster because of this of the haemorrhaging of electoral help and inner preventing. While these are definitely key elements, it’s in reality the organisation’s death of ideas that’s its largest undoing. When an organisation turns into too invested in names and positions, and never in ideas that can protect it to posterity, it designs its personal coffin. With time, every part it has ever represented will probably be mendacity on the backside of a grave – forgotten. The ANC, whether it is critical about halting its steep descent, should before everything return to the age of growing ideas that grow to be embedded in society. Real energy is outlined not by electoral success, however by the hegemony of ideas. Without this hegemony, the ANC’s wealthy historical past and legacy of ideas will probably be relegated to the dustbin of historical past.