The role of civil society in advocating for good governance, accountability, and ethical leadership in South Africa

Introduction

South Africa is in a transition again. The 2024 National and Provincial elections were pivotal to the changing political landscape in the country. Citizens were decisive and voted for change – seeking change in the way the country is governed, ending the era of one dominant political party, and ushering in an era of collective governance.

While there was no outright winner of the election, the electoral outcome is one of the signs of political and democratic maturity in the country, where every citizen enjoys the freedom to choose their political party of choice, and their wishes must be respected. The democratic culture must be celebrated by all South Africans and protected as a legacy for future generations.

Challenges and Opportunities

However, the electoral outcome exposed the myriad concerns that the public has harboured for a long time over their democracy, which, in many ways, has not delivered to their expectations. Poor political leadership at different levels of governance in the public sector, bad governance in various government departments and municipalities across the country, poor service delivery, human rights violations, increasing cases of corruption and maladministration, as well as sub-optimal audit reports issued by the Auditor-General in the last couple of years, added to the list of grievances that the citizenry has been harbouring for a long time. In exercising their constitutionally mandated power, they voted for the change they wanted to see.

The Role of Civil Society

Now that the elections are over, a coalition government is in place nationally, and in most provinces, the real work of watchdog has commenced for all – citizens and civil society alike. The question is, can the political centre hold in a Government of National Unity (GNU) or coalition? The answer to this question lies partly in the work that citizenry, and civil society, are willing to do as active citizenry, and the degree of political maturity on the part of the political parties.

Civil society should proactively engage with the various parliamentary committees to ensure they actively exercise their oversight responsibilities over the executive and provincial governments. The sector must play an essential role in advocating policies that capture the aspirations of the citizenry as expressed by their vote.

Advocacy and Oversight

The DDP, through its civil society-led “Local Governance and Advocacy Learning Advocacy (LGALN),” continues to mobilise nonprofit organisations, including community-based organisations, to hold municipalities in KwaZulu-Natal accountable for their decisions and actions. Targeted advocacy engagements ensure promises made are honoured and implemented. As a civil society network, we raise awareness about issues related to governance, accountability, and ethics, among other aspects.

We work to mobilise citizens’ opinions, collate them, and use them to pressure decision-makers to act responsibly and transparently. Furthermore, the network actively monitors the actions of government officials and the institutions they represent, scrutinising policies, budgets, and decisions to ensure they are in line with ethical standards and serve the public interest. This oversight is crucial if good governance, accountability, compliance, and ethical leadership are to be upheld as a norm in this new political dispensation.

Public Participation and Capacity Building

To deepen oversight responsibilities, civil society should facilitate and demand meaningful public participation, where ordinary citizens and representatives of citizens’ interest groups have a voice in governance and decision-making processes, and their concerns are addressed. The DDP convenes monthly political forums where citizens can meet with all political parties and representatives from the Durban metropolitan and KZN departmental heads, to discuss issues of concern. This approach has deepened the practice of holding municipal and provincial leadership accountable, often lobbying for enacting laws that promote accountability and better leadership.

Additionally, ongoing capacity enhancement of civil society, including grassroots organisations, is crucial to its capabilities of exercising oversight and holding leadership accountable. The DDP offers targeted capacity-building interventions to civil society and citizen interest groups regularly, to strengthen their organisational capacities to engage effectively with municipal departments and government institutions.

Conclusion

In conclusion, civil society in South Africa contributes significantly to fostering a democratic environment where governance, accountability, and ethical leadership can thrive. While this exercise will be expensive and daunting, the sector summons its inspiration and courage from its consistent call for better governance and political accountability of all government programmes and policies. Ethical leadership, good governance, and fostering a culture of public participation can become the standard, while calling every civil society organisation to be actively involved in co-governing their elected political leadership will ensure that their engagement remains citizen-focused.