The ANC for Sale? Money, Morality & Business in South Africa

Bibliographic Data

ID11904428
AuthorsR Southall (0000-0001-5635-9096, University of the Witwatersrand, corresponding author)
Year2008
Volume35
Issue116
Publication date2008-06-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueReview of African Political Economy (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0305-6244 • E-ISSN: 1740-1720
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/03056240802196336
OpenAlexW2082319825
LanguageEN
Citations received18
References cited2

The African National Congress (ANC) as a liberation movement drew much of its strength from its moral underpinnings as fighting for a just society. However, since its acquisition of political office in 1994, the ANC is widely perceived to have lost its moral compass. This demoralization needs to be located within the structural determinants of the South African transition. Against the background of the dilemmas faced by the ANC in its bid to promote its National Democratic Revolution (NDR), this paper explores how the party's need to secure funding has seen it complement official state funding by tapping corporate largesse, moving into business and accessing public monies. Meanwhile, the mutual interests of the new political power holders and established business have forged close connections across the public and private divide which at times have bordered on the criminal. Despite the ANC's declared intentions to address its moral rot by implementation of new ethical controls, the reciprocal needs of powerful business interests and party elites are likely to limit their effectiveness. Continued pressure for ‘revolutionary morality’ must therefore come from below and outside the ruling party

Democracy · Moral economy · Morality · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Power (physics · Public relations · Sociology · State (computer science · Law · Legal Issues in South Africa · Public Administration · South African History and Culture

Tools

Open DOISci-HubOpen Access