South Africa: Corruption And Economy

South Africa was formed in 1652 due to European colonization. The country has faced many challenges over the course of 300 years, dealing with racism and corruption. In 1910, an act passed giving the white minority total power, while almagating every other state, republic and colony into the Union of South Africa, however, they still remained under command. In 1913, the 1913 Land Act passed, creating the idea of apartheid in South Africa and segregating blacks from whites. The African National Congress (ANC) was created in response. Apartheid continued to be prominent throughout South Africa, like when biracial marriage was forbidden, and blacks were separated into specialized areas to prevent revolutionary ideas as well as creating public facilities for the purpose of keeping blacks and white apart. Even though the government that had initially initiated apartheid was changed and apartheid officially ended in 1994, the country is still attempting to rebuild their economy while dealing with problems of corruption and diseases.

Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma received a Bachelor’s Degree in Science in 1978. She was active in the ANC tasks. Under Mandela’s rule, she was appointed as the Minister of Health. Although passing a bill regarding smoking in public places, there were some scandals involving misused government funds while Zuma was in charge. She has served in in many positions since then, including Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Home Affairs, and an African Union Chairperson. By taking a non-militaristic stance on Africa’s conflicts, as well as a perspective focused on gender-equality, Zuma has proven herself a prominent figure in South African politics. She was recently defeated by Cyril Ramaphosa as the President of the ANC, and is currently serving as the Minister in the Presidency for the National Planning Commision for Policy and Evaluation, advocating for racial equality. She is hostile towards the West, although creating allies with African countries. Even though accusations have arisen regarding government corruption with Zuma, she has denied all claims, stating, “I have never done so, and I will not do so.”

Corruption

One of the major problems impacting the economy’s re-growth in South Africa is corruption. All throughout the country, government officials and citizens are bribing others for personal gain. Higher ranking workers are abusing their power by entrusting friends with jobs or business contracts for the purpose of showing off their good work to their superiors. All of this embezzlement has led to little money for government funded projects like building roads, schools, and other public facilities. Most of the corruption in South Africa is because of former President Jacob Zuma. Zuma, while serving as president, had allegedly spent over 100 billion dollars on “security measures” such as home renovations, and buying nuclear reactors that were unnecessary to the growth of the South African economy. Zuma’s misdemeanors were the main reason the South African citizens lost all hope in the government’s ability to remain un-corrupt. These factors are the main reason that many citizens have taken to bribing law officials, judges, or any other government facilities.

Many actions are needed in order to reaffirm the South African citizens trust in the ANC and the government as a whole. One step that the government of South Africa can take to assure that the citizens have faith in their government is by funding a watchdog program all throughout cities in South Africa. By taking this action, the people of South Africa can rest safely knowing that the watch-dogs will be patrolling the streets for any signs of corruption. A long term solution to solve this solution would be to weed out all of corrupt leaders in the ANC. The way to accomplish this task would be to hold an investigation on all allegations against any important persons involved with the ANC. The investigators would need to be highly trained, and conduct a highly specialized inquiry into any claim made against somebody. By implementing this routine, the South African government can confirm that the future of corrupt leaders will be limited. Although the ANC and government have been proven to be corrupt, many citizens feel that they do not have a voice when reporting instances of corruption in the government. By establishing a program where citizens of South Africa can delineate any occurence of corruption by telling a representative placed by the ANC in cities around South Africa, or by filling out a survey that will be reviewed by a board of representatives. This information will be used by the representatives, and will put an investigation in place for the allegations. This will also give the people strong faith that they are being listened to, and that the corruption within the government can decrease.

Economy

The South African economy had flourished ever since Nelson Mandela’s rise to power in 1994. Although their GDP is quite large (739.4 billion dollars) the country still has a large economic gap regarding wealth. Again, even though the economy is currently stable, the unemployment rate is sky high (25.9%) and the ANC controls most of the economic affairs within South Africa, meaning that corruption is obstructing them from keeping the economy safe. Despite the fact that the ANC has differences of opinions, the time to grow the economy is now because of their protection of property policies.

Ramaphosa has been attempting to stimulate the economy through international investors, renewable energy, and a digital revolution. The importance of international investors is being challenged because countries are hesitant towards South Africa. This is because the ANC has split into “factions” under Zuma’s reign, when two groups could not decide how to handle the rules the UN imposed on South Africa regarding telecommunications. Another problem with Zuma’s rule was the Financial Director he elected. Malusi Gigaba has promised the nation that he will create a “radical transformation” within South Africa by redistributing the wealth equally throughout the middle classes. If Ramaphosa and his cabinet can deduce how to unite all members of the ANC, the economy of South Africa can continue to thrive and grow.

The solutions to help rebuild the South African economy are simple, and if used effectively, can be very useful to the stimulation of the economy. By lowering the unemployment rate and creating new federal jobs, the people will receive more money and raise the amount of consumer spending, therefore allowing companies to hire more employees. By administering jobs through the government, like building roads, hospitals, and other federal facilities, the unemployed people in South Africa can have a chance to go back to work.

Prime Minister Gigaba has promised many things that he will do to the South African economy. Although he supports Zuma, Cyril Ramaphosa, should make clear through a press conference that although he is against Zuma and his policies, he does agree that Gigaba’s plans for the future are bright and the ANC will carry through with the preposition. One way that Gigaba’s goal can be reached will be by creating a committee within the ANC with the task of redistributing the wealth held by the upper class into the lower class. They will be unbiased in their decisions, and will also communicate with the people to make sure that they are happy. It is important to create a community where the people have a voice within the politics, and regarding the ANC, the people will have more faith with the political party.