Letter: South Africa’s ANC has chance to course-correct

The results of the recent election in South Africa carry important lessons. A look at one of the charts in the FT article “In charts: 30 years of ANC rule in South Africa” (FT.com, May 29) shows a trend that should have been a cautionary tale for South Africa’s African National Congress (ANC), but it seems its leaders were not paying attention.

The chart, sourced from the Electoral Commission of South Africa, shows that the ANC’s electoral performance following the end of apartheid had as its basis the stratospheric popularity of Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first and, by choice, one term post-apartheid president (1994—1999).

The ANC’s share of the popular vote rose from 62.25 per cent — worth 52 seats in parliament during the Mandela presidency, to a peak of 69.69 per cent, worth 79 seats during Thabo Mbeki’s presidency (1999—2009).

The subsequent trend between 2009 and now has shown a steady decline from those giddy heights to the current 40.18 per cent. Although this gives the ANC a plurality of the total votes cast, it does not have an outright majority, necessitating, that for the first time since democratic rule commenced, the party would have to form a coalition government to remain in power.

The ANC’s problems can be summarised in one word, “hubris”. The tremendous effort and sacrifice of the ANC in pursuit of equality for Black people in South Africa during apartheid — documented in history — cannot be taken from it. What has become problematic for the ANC is the sense of entitlement to the votes of the majority Black population — something which it may have interpreted was conferred on it given its place in history — no matter how it performs with the mandate it is given, each electoral cycle.

The silver lining from the results of the recent election is that the people of South Africa — and the Black population in particular — have chosen to save the ANC from itself. The party should view this as an opportunity to rid itself of its damaging hubristic tendencies, and course-correct towards earning back the trust of the voting public.

Matthew Akalusi
Gatineau, QC, Canada