Socio-economic rights Archives - Page 5 of 10

ARTICLE: THE MAKANA JUDGEMENT – A SMALL NEW DAWN FOR LOCAL AUTHORITIES?

2020-03-17

The shocking state of local government finances and service delivery is well known. The 2019 Auditor-General’s report on the state of local government finances showed that more than a third of the 257 municipalities and 21 municipal entities were dysfunctional. Only 8% received a clean audit (versus 14% in 2016/17). When traveling in the north of the country, especially in the countryside, the decline of smaller towns in terms of maintenance of roads, water and sewage is evident. Standerton (Lekwa) was in the news last year when the municipality, which is only a few kilometres from the Vaal River and the Grootdraai Dam, was unable to supply water to the Astral Foods plant.

ARTICLE: THE IDEOLOGICAL BLINDNESS TO THE ECONOMIC DAMAGE OF EXPROPRIATION WITH NIL COMPENSATION

2020-01-31

The deadline for comments on the draft amendment bill on section 25 of the Constitution (the so-called Constitution Eighteenth Amendment Bill) is fast approaching. Numerous organisations are busy putting their comments in writing. The majority of these will oppose it, while committing themselves to the urgent need for land reform in terms of the present Constitution.

ARTICLE: IT’S STILL TOO EARLY TO SAY THAT IT’S GAME OVER FOR PRESIDENT RAMAPHOSA

2020-01-23

In a recent article, I wrote about five trends that will characterise 2020. These five are:

Greater centralisation and State control by the ANC government on the actions of South Africans;
Better investigations, charges and prosecutions by the National Prosecuting Authority (NPA) and the Hawks.
The gradual but definite erosion of government institutions’ ability to govern, manage, maintain and provide basic services;
The ongoing infighting within the ANC and its alliance partners (and accompanying attacks on President Ramaphosa); and
The stagnant economy (with the possibility of a downgrade lurking).

In the past week, the focus of the media and citizens has specificially been on the infighting in the ANC (no. 4 above), which was influenced and even driven by Eskom’s problems (no. 3 above).

ARTICLE: INTERNATIONAL ANTI-CORRUPTION DAY: 9 DECEMBER

2019-12-09

On 31 October 2003, the United Nations General Assembly decided to declare 9 December as International Anti-Corruption Day. Its role would be “to raise awareness of corruption and of the role of the UN Convention against Corruption” that came into force in 2005.

Article 6 of the Convention required States Party to ensure the existence of “a body or bodies to prevent corruption”. Such bodies would be granted the necessary independence to enable them to carry out their functions effectively and free from any undue influence. They would also be provided with the “necessary material resources and specialised staff, as well as the training that such staff may require to carry out their functions.”

ARTICLE: SECTION 25: TO AMEND OR NOT…

2019-08-16

The report of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture was presented to President Ramaphosa on 4 May 2019 and made available to the public in July. Even before this date, two panelists – Dan Kriek (president of AgriSA) and Nick Serfontein (well-known farmer) – decided to hand over a minority report to the President. It was made available to the public after the main report.

What are the key differences between the main report and the minority report? Why did these two respected panelists find it necessary to draft a minority report? The differences can be summarised in three groups: process issues, style and ideological issues and substantive issues.

ARTICLE: CAN MOTHER TONGUE EDUCATION IN SOUTH AFRICAN SCHOOLS BECOME A REALITY?

2019-08-14

During her recent budget speech, the Minister of Basic Education, Angie Motshekga, referred to President Ramaphosa’s target in his State of the Nation address that every learner should be able to read with comprehension by the age of ten. She notes that the language issue is a key factor affecting reading ability and literacy, and then refers to the importance of African languages as teaching and reading languages. However, the phrase “mother tongue education” was not mentioned in her speech.

ARTICLE: THE REPORT OF THE PRESIDENTIAL ADVISORY PANEL ON LAND REFORM AND AGRICULTURE

2019-08-05

The Final Report of the Presidential Advisory Panel on Land Reform and Agriculture, which was released to the public on 28 July, is already causing uncertainty and concern over the future of agriculture and property rights in South Africa. Two of the Panel’s 10 members, Dan Kriek, the President of Agri SA, and Nick Serfontein, a commercial farmer, have issued a minority report rejecting many of the Panel’s main recommendations.

The Panel was appointed by President Ramaphosa in September 2018 to “provide a unified policy perspective on land reform in respect of land restitution, land redistribution and land tenure reform”. It was also asked to report on the circumstances in which expropriation without compensation (EWC) should be applied and the procedures and institutions that should be involved in its implementation.

ARTICLE: HOW DOES THE SCORECARD FOR OUR HARD-PRESSED COUNTRY’S TURNAROUND LOOK?

2019-07-23

It’s already old news that former President Zuma appeared before the Zondo Commission last week. He seemed to be suffering from severe amnesia, or have no opinion about most matters.

But in addition to this news, there is another question that most right-thinking and concerned South Africans are wrestling with, and which commentators reflect upon daily. Is President Ramaphosa winning the battle to turn the country around? Is he winning his battle to reform the country, and especially the State, to save it from the clutches of the Zuptas, to help the economy recover, and to set the country on a steady course?

ARTICLE: WHEN COURTS INTERVENE TO SAVE THE POOR

2017-11-22

The ongoing SASSA debacle is setting off unprecedented concerns, including but not limited to ineffectual leadership by the Minister of Social Development, allegations and counter-allegations between SASSA and SAPO as potential service provider, and crucially that of dragging the justice system into administering a failing political process.

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