Dr John Ntshaupe Molepo
For some months now, ‘operation dudula’ has occupied centre stage in South Africa’s body politic. Originating in Soweto, one of the country’s biggest townships, the movement has received a warm reception in other townships such as Alexandra and Seshego.
Operation Dudula may seek to address societal challenges faced by communities at grassroots level. It gained popularity when it opposed the City of Johannesburg’s intention to cut-off electricity due to non-payment from residents. Operation Dudula has since widened its scope to also tackle long-standing social problems of such as drug abuse, which continues to characterise and destroy the lives of young people in townships. In this regard, the movement has fearlessly confronted those alleging to be druglords.
A few weeks ago, its leader, Nhlanhla ‘Lux’ Dlamini, was arrested following the unlawful raid of a suspected drug dealer in Soweto. Dlamini had to spend the weekend in the police cells and was granted bail on 28 March. The Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) was instrumental in encouraging the victim to open up a case against Operation Dudula, in particular, its leader Dlamini.
Operation Dudula also confronts the crisis of immigration in the country – a problem that most political parties are reluctant to confront. The EFF has consistently criticised the movement to the extent of describing them as ‘thugs’. This is not coincidental because the EFF is for open borders when Operation Dudula is vehemently opposed to this.
However, it is worth mentioning that not everyone in society is opposed to the activities of operation dudula. There are some who support their campaigns. It appears as if the movement is filling the vacuum that has been created by politics in our country. The issue of drug abuse has tormented communities and destroyed communities for years. Yet, political parties which purport to represent these communities have been mute.
In addition, communities have been dissatisfied with government’s efforts toward addressing the social challenges of drug abuse and undocumented migrants. In the case of undocumented migrants, communities are concerned that they commit illegal activities in the country, knowing full well that they cannot be easily traced.
However, one must acknowledge recent government efforts led by Home Affairs Minister Dr Aaron Motsoaledi in terms of addressing this challenge. I must hasten to add that since he was made a minister of this troubled department, there seems to be a light at the end of the tunnel. Yet, these problems are systematic and will not disappear any time soon.
The failure by political parties in South Africa to confront community issues head-on gives credence to accusations that there is a Chinese Wall between leaders and communities. In fact, most political parties are only visible in communities only during election campaigns. This conduct creates a vacuum that movements like operation dudula can easily occupy. As they say, nature doesn’t allow a vacuum.
Even during apartheid, civic movements were at the forefront of advancing the anti-apartheid struggle when leading political parties were banned. Thus, instead of just only criticising operation dudula, political parties must work on the ground and address the challenges of communities.
Because of the social distance that exists between political parties and communities, one is compelled to ask this principally important question: Is it still necessary for communities to rely on political parties to advance their interests when these parties are mostly only visible during elections?
Judging by its growing popularity in some affected communities, doesn’t its popularity signal the fact that communities are losing faith in party politics? Lessons in local governance from across the globe can be helpful when pondering these questions.
Throughout the world, there is a phenomenon emerging that some scholars describe as ‘new municipalism’ – characterised by the actions of citizens who come together to perform some tasks that municipalities appear to have neglected, such as fixing potholes and collecting refuse. Another telling example is that in the recently held local government elections in Barcelona, “citizens chose to elect a mayor who (was) not aligned to any political party”. Even in South Africa, we have seen independent candidates rising in popularity in local government elections. Is this not a demonstration that communities can do without political parties?
So what needs to be done?
As democracy matures, it is unavoidable that civic movements will continue to rise in popularity. Thus, political parties should start working with such movements particularly if there are areas of common interest. Antagonising these movements may render political parties even more irrelevant in communities in the long run.
* Dr John Ntshaupe Molepo is a Senior Lecturer of Public Administration at University of Mpumalanga. He writes in his personal capacity.