Articles Archives - Page 4 of 65 - FW de Klerk Foundation

THE WARD COUNCILLOR YOU’VE NEVER MET IS MAKING DECISIONS ABOUT YOUR LIFE

2026-06-19

As first appeared in Sunday World. With local election turnout declining and youth disengagement deepening, too many South Africans remain disconnected from the ward councillors and municipalities that shape their daily lives. A new civic research initiative seeks to turn citizens’ experiences into evidence that can strengthen democratic participation, service delivery and municipal accountability ahead of the 2026 local government elections.

ABDULLAH IBRAHIM: A JAZZ ICON OF INTERNATIONAL STATURE

2026-06-19

Abdullah Ibrahim’s influence extends far beyond the distinctive sounds of District Six, the townships, and the broader narrative of Africa’s struggle against injustice. Through his compositions, he endowed African jazz with symphonic depth and elevated it to the international stage. His legacy lives on in the communities where he laid the groundwork for the next generation of jazz musicians. It lives on across both local and international stages. It lives on in every musician who pays tribute to him by interpreting his music as their own.

STATE ABDICATION AND INCAPABILITY: THE CATALYST FOR VIOLENCE, CORRUPTION, AND LAWLESSNESS

2026-06-15

South Africa possesses one of the world’s most progressive constitutions and highly sophisticated policy frameworks. Yet, a catastrophic disconnect exists across every tier of governance: chronic state inaction and regulatory blindness, followed inevitably by frantic, performative, and costly reactive crisis management.

LETTER FROM THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT ON FW DE KLERK FOUNDATION PARLIAMENTARY DISRUPTION RESEARCH

2026-06-08

The FW de Klerk Foundation welcomes the Presidency’s response to its research on the financial and constitutional cost of parliamentary disruptions. The Foundation’s analysis shows that disrupted sittings can cost taxpayers thousands of rand per minute while weakening Parliament’s duty to hold the Executive accountable. Following the Presidency’s encouragement, the Foundation will now engage Parliament directly on stronger accountability, consequence management and respect for South Africa’s constitutional institutions.

LOCAL GOVERNMENT IS FAILING SOUTH AFRICANS – HERE IS HOW WE FIX IT

2026-06-04

For millions of South Africans, the Constitution promises open, accountable and responsive government, dignity, equality and access to basic services like water. Yet for many communities, those promise collapses at local government level. Water taps run dry, refuse is not collected, potholes are permanent and corruption goes unpunished.

SECURING THE FOUNDATION OF PROSPERITY: WHY SOUTH AFRICA MUST EXPAND, NOT ABOLISH, PROPERTY RIGHTS

2026-06-04

Three decades after South Africa’s transition to a non-racial democracy, the country’s unresolved land question remains one of its most volatile political and economic fault lines. Recently, calls to abolish private land ownership have resurfaced with renewed vigor. Promoted by political figures such as Mzwanele “Jimmy” Manyi and the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP), this populist rhetoric advocates for the elimination of private property in favour of total state ownership or state trusteeship.

WHEN ANGER FINDS THE WRONG TARGET…XENOPHOBIC PROTESTS AND THE 2026 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS

2026-06-01

South Africa’s local government elections are approaching at a time of real unemployment, service delivery and governance failures, but xenophobic mobilisation is directing public anger at the wrong target. The article argues that anti-immigrant protests undermine constitutional accountability by replacing demands for competent local government with scapegoating, fear and unlawful vigilantism. The FW de Klerk Foundation warns that South Africa’s genuine grievances must be resolved through the rule of law, democratic accountability and constitutional governance – not hostility toward vulnerable minorities.

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT MUST REDRESS THE PAST WITHOUT CONTRACTING SOUTH AFRICA INTO RACIAL FOREVERISM

2026-05-25

The FW de Klerk Foundation argues that South Africa must pursue meaningful redress for the injustices of apartheid without turning racial classification into a permanent organising principle of public procurement. This article cautions that the Public Procurement Act of 2024 and proposed 2026 regulations risk placing rigid preference mechanisms above fairness, competition, transparency, cost-effectiveness and municipal capacity. The Foundation calls for a more constitutionally disciplined model of procurement that targets real disadvantage, builds supplier capability, fights corruption and advances South Africa towards a genuinely non-racial society.

WHEN PARLIAMENT IS DISRUPTED, TAXPAYERS PAY

2026-05-20

When Parliament is disrupted, taxpayers pay not only for lost time, but for weakened oversight and reduced accountability. This article argues that parliamentary disorder carries a measurable public cost, using official remuneration and budget figures to estimate what each wasted minute means in rands. It concludes that robust debate must be protected, but preventable obstruction should carry consequences that reflect the real cost to citizens.

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THE WARD COUNCILLOR YOU’VE NEVER MET IS MAKING DECISIONS ABOUT YOUR LIFE

ABDULLAH IBRAHIM: A JAZZ ICON OF INTERNATIONAL STATURE

STATE ABDICATION AND INCAPABILITY: THE CATALYST FOR VIOLENCE, CORRUPTION, AND LAWLESSNESS

LETTER FROM THE OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT ON FW DE KLERK FOUNDATION PARLIAMENTARY DISRUPTION RESEARCH

LOCAL GOVERNMENT IS FAILING SOUTH AFRICANS – HERE IS HOW WE FIX IT

SECURING THE FOUNDATION OF PROSPERITY: WHY SOUTH AFRICA MUST EXPAND, NOT ABOLISH, PROPERTY RIGHTS

WHEN ANGER FINDS THE WRONG TARGET…XENOPHOBIC PROTESTS AND THE 2026 LOCAL GOVERNMENT ELECTIONS

PUBLIC PROCUREMENT MUST REDRESS THE PAST WITHOUT CONTRACTING SOUTH AFRICA INTO RACIAL FOREVERISM

WHEN PARLIAMENT IS DISRUPTED, TAXPAYERS PAY

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