N5 – Module 2
Te idea is very simple. Citizen A and his family are not able to take part directly, so they elect or vote for someone they feel they can trust to speak on their behalf. But this does not work unless the elected representatives follow the principles of political responsibility and accountability (see also pp.28, 42). Citizen A and his family should be guaranteed that their representative will look aſter their interests and will not use his/her authority to further the interests of one political group, or of themselves. For this to happen they need to be responsible and also accountable.
Aristotle’s idea of accountability was that each statement of income and expenditure should be posted on the city’s gate for all to read. Te sad fact is that representatives are sometimes found wanting; cases of corruption, theſt and mismanagement are all too common. Te citizen who has neither the time or the knowledge to deal with difficult political and financial matters, and who entrusts someone else to speak for him/her, is oſten leſt having to pay the price of this mismanagement. In all cases mismanagement costs money; money that comes out of your pocket! For example it is estimated that the cost of corruption in South Africa is enough to pay for the entire education budget.
Representatives Versus Voters Representatives are chosen to speak, to make decisions on behalf of their voters – direct participation is difficult and expensive as there are too many voters; the representative therefore participates on behalf of the voter. • Direct participation by the voter himself/herself is sacrificed; • Indirect participation takes place via the elected political representative or official.
And so in a representative democracy decision-making itself moves away from the taxpayer to the representative or political official.
In a One-Party System Te power shiſts from the voter to the representative – but the representative is chosen within a system that is NOT considered to be democratic. Without an opposition party to keep the government in check, the political system oſten degenerates into something little better than a dictatorship. Tis model has been tried by many countries – oſten ruling the country might appear easier, but seldom do the representatives practise public accountability as no political opposition exists to challenge their decisions.
Case Study: Totalitarian Governments In January 1933, Adolf Hitler became Chancellor of Germany. He quickly used his power to eliminate his opposition, allowing him to set up a totalitarian government. He used a fire in the Reichstag (German Parliament) as an excuse to suppress many liberties and ruthlessly crack down on his opposition. In 1934, the Enabling Act allowed Hitler to pass laws without Parliamentary debate. Hitler then used the Schutzstaffel (SS) to assassinate his political opposition in what became known as the Night of the Long Knives.
What followed Hitler’s rise to power is well documented: World War II and the genocide of approximately 6 million European Jews. Much of this happened because Hitler didn’t have an opposition to hold him in check.
In Africa, Robert Mugabe has repeatedly suppressed his opposition, most notably in 1983 in Operation Gukurahundi (the early rain which washes away the chaff before the spring rains) where the Korean-trained 5th Brigade executed an estimated 20 000 people.
Te dangers of the suppression of opposition are clear: once a totalitarian government is in power, it can be as ruthless as it likes without consequence.
32
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140