Academic Scientific JournalsOne problem two parties: the ANC and DA governance crisis
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.26881/jpgs.2026.3.03Keywords:
South Africa, Governance, African National Congress, Democratic Alliance, AccountabilityAbstract
The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate that, despite their different constituencies, ideological orientations, and political narratives, the two political parties exhibit similar governance weaknesses, including institutional decay, centralised decisionmaking, policy inconsistency, and the erosion of public accountability. This paper explores the shared governance crisis of South Africa’s two leading political parties, the African National Congress and the Democratic Alliance. While often positioned as ideological opposites, both parties demonstrate converging patterns of administrative inefficiency, political elitism and moral decay. Drawing on comparative evidence from national and municipal levels, the paper contends that South Africa’s political dysfunction transcends party lines and is rooted in a deeper structural problem of political culture marked by weak accountability, performative democracy and citizen alienation. The paper highlights how both parties, in different contexts, reproduce inequalities rather than dismantle them, thereby undermining democratic consolidation. The paper concludes by calling for a reimagined political ethos that prioritizes ethical leadership, inclusive governance and civic empowerment over partisan dominance.
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