New dawn or false dawn?
South Africa’s ruling party’s devotion to its policy of cadre deployment is an indication that it values its own power more than the public interest.
Image credit Siyabulela Duda, 2019 via GCIS on Flickr CC BY-ND 2.0.
The Zondo Commission has made serious findings of criminality against individuals, politicians, and private companies that enabled and benefited from state capture in South Africa. State capture refers to the handing over of the levers of the economy and policymaking to private interests, most notably the Guptas, a powerful Indian business family (its two leading brothers, Atul and Rajesh, were arrested in Dubai earlier this month, but the South African government is stalling with their extradition). The findings show that South Africa’s ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC) directly facilitated corruption and financially gained from it. Notably, the ANC’s deployment committee recommended that corrupt actors be awarded board positions at various public entities. In addition, the proceeds of corrupt tenders flowed directly to the ANC. The governing party is now in a period of self-proclaimed “renewal.” But as pressure increases for the party to change, it appears steadfast on protecting both its deployment committee and the sources of its funding.
When ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa appeared before the Zondo Commission (the government commission of inquiry headed by Chief Justice Raymond Zondo) in April 2021, he was asked to explain the role of the ANC’s deployment committee and to address the party’s political funding sources. Evidence from the commission shows that the ANC directly benefited from tender corruption, receiving kickbacks and bribes as a form of party funding. The governing party is now scrambling to resist transparency legislation, which forces South African political parties to declare their donors.
Meanwhile, the ANC’s deployment committee has come under scrutiny at the commission over its interference in various state-owned entities (SOEs). The deployment committee is a branch of the ANC that recommends candidates for various positions in the public sector, including SOEs. But the ANC’s insistence on deploying its own cadres has done more damage than good, and it has shown little willingness to change.
