By Desmond Pitoyi
Clearly, since 1994 there has been election observor missions coming to South Africa to monitor each and every election, and there were no qualms about that. And it is not up to a political party to make that judgement call. Once again, the DA is playing cheap politics and exposing itself for what it really is.
Then, the new kid on the block, umKhonto weSizwe (MK party), fronted by former president Jacob Zuma, enters the fray and looks set to be a monkey on the ANC’s back.
Zuma has been telling the nation that he is still a member of the ANC and will not vote for his party as long as Cyril Ramaphosa is still at the helm. So, he has become a member and the face of the MK party to unseat Ramaphosa. Speak of a contradiction in terms.
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula, former president Thabo Mbeki and other party members have on different public platforms and occasions declared that by associating himself with the newly formed MK party, Zuma has already defined himself out of the ANC, an organisation he stood and fought for for donkey’s years.
Now, the ANC has dragged the MK party through court on copyright infringement allegations for using the name “umKhonto weSizwe”, which the governing party claims is its trade mark and owns copyright thereof. Mzansi is waiting with bated breath for the outcome of the legal process.
The IEC has not been spared either in this political quagmire. The MK party has threatened that there will be all-out war and ungovernability, if it is not on the ballot paper on voting day.
On the sidelines, in a recent interview, Saftu’s Zwelinzima Vavi was quoted as apologising for supporting Zuma in the period leading up to 2007, saying “it was the biggest mistake”. Is Vavi saying this to save face?
Confronted with all these dynamics and having difficulty choosing which political party to vote for, or even undecided whether to vote or not, the masses are also disillusioned with the parties and the status quo.
At the same time, voters are looking for some saviour, including among those whose hands are dripping with blood in terms of creating conditions that we find ourselves in.
The economy is in a downward spiral, load shedding is the bane of our existence. Gauteng is now faced with threats of Day Zero as the taps are running dry, and all illogical explanations are put forward.
If the ANC falls below 50%, it will have limited options, or no options at all. There is even talk of it going into coalition with some small parties.
Meanwhile, the MK party has not spelled out its policy or manifesto, or has it done so? Therefore, it is unclear which direction it seeks to take in so far as key parliamentary votes are concerned.
There is speculation that what we have seen unfold at local municipality level – where coalitions rule the roost – the same could be true in the national space, post elections.
Whatever the outcome, let us not allow history to repeat itself like in the days when the IFP threw tentrumps and was put on the ballot paper on the 11th hour as it threatened to plunge the country into chaos. That is the last thing this country needs right now.
As things stand, the voter is faced with information overload as the matrix of the upcoming national and provincial elections play themselves out. How is it all going to end? One wonders!
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