African Journal of Political Science

Lived Poverty and the Fate of African Democracies

Edson Ntodwa — 2024-09-12

In comparative politics, economic development is a requisite for democracy. Democracy is deemed to fail in less developed countries as poverty has proven to be detrimental to democratic performance. This study offers a perspective on the effects of poverty on the fate of democracy in Africa using the Afrobarometer panel survey data (2002–2018). Recognising the ordered nature of the dependent variable, an ordered logistic regression model and descriptive statistics are used to examine the effect of lived poverty on the fate of African democracy. The results indicate that poverty in Africa has a mixed effect on democracy more generally. In particular, the analysis indicates that the experience of poverty, which we have termed ‘lived poverty’, has a negative effect on the demand and supply of democracy and on several attributes of political participation. The fact that the poor demand democracy less than the well-to-do while at the same time perceiving a limited supply of democracy, in our view, explains why more African regimes are consolidating as hybrid regimes instead of moving towards democratic consolidation.

Effects of Ethiopia’s landlocked status on ties with its neighbours

Shimelash Dagnew — 2024-09-12

This study looks at Ethiopia’s landlocked status and the economic, security, and political implications for the country’s relations with its neighbors. Furthermore, it addresses potential threats arising from the implications as well as potential solutions. Ethiopia lost its sea outlet after 1991. As a result, it is incurring significant costs to cover port fees and other related costs. Ethiopia’s economy is suffering as a result of the high cost. A literature review is used as a source of data to investigate the implications of Ethiopia’s landlocked status in relation to its ties with neighboring countries. Books, journals, internet materials, and media outlets were consulted in this regard. Furthermore, a key informant interview was conducted to collect up-to-date data and information that supports the findings of the literature review. The security and political aspects are discussed in light of East Africa’s security, neighboring countries’ interests, and the presence of foreign powers in the region. This study underlines that Ethiopia’s landlocked status has implications for its security and political affairs. Ethiopia’s landlocked status is primarily due to the country’s political leadership. Ethiopia can deal with the consequences of its landlocked status by establishing a stable political system and developing a compatible economic policy. In this regard, Ethiopia should learn from other countries how to overcome the negative effects of landlockedness, as there are developed landlocked countries.

Chinese Funding: A Curse to Africa

Chido Chipfakacha — 2024-09-12

The role of China in the liberation of Africa from colonial rule cannot be down played as I laid a foundation to Africa today. Most African countries were aided by China militarily and ideologically in the fight against Western colonial rule. Though some scholars would suggest that China`s contribution was as a result of the hostility that was there in the times of the cold war between the self-acclaimed democrats of the Western bloc and the Communist Eastern bloc. Philosophers like Marx Engel, Karl Marx, Lenin and Mao Zedong had a major influence on the liberation of Africa. The purpose of this paper is to show how the relationship that started as sincere has become a curse for the poor and unconnected Africans. In recent years the Chinese has overtaken the Briton hood Institutes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank as the major lenders of loans to African States. Kwame Nkrumah warned us of the danger of Africa being recolonised in what he termed neo colonialism where the colonisers will come as investors. Neo colonialism is no longer a theory but has become a reality as will be exposed in this article using empirical, qualitative and quantitative research methods to show how a friendship with China has benefited the elite politicians at the cost of citizens affairs. Africa is endowed with natural resources yet it has the poorest population per Gross Domestic Product (GDP) per capita. The paper will show how it is easy for a Chinese to own a business in Africa compared to the native Africans using the case of Shurugwi in Zimbabwe.

Hegemonic Party System and Federalism

Yohannes Getahun — 2024-09-12

The paper inquires about the fixture of the Ethiopian Peoples’ Revolutionary Democratic Party (EPRDF) in the Ethiopian federal system, as a dependent variable. It is an interpretive-case study design that elaborates, not compare, a given case with certain theoretical and empirical guides drawn from literature, official, and public documents. The discussions have shown the malfunction of the EPRDF dominated party system in the multi-ethnic federal constitutional setup, in terms of legitimacy and effectiveness. The hegemonic political program of EPRDF was not in line with the political pluralism meaning of the federal constitutional diversity, as it delinked the constitutional right to self-determination and federal self-rule from the types of political options and choices that dovetailed to multi party democracy. On the structure of EPRDF, equal representation was favourable to the federal politics of diversity accommodation
and minority protection. However, the exclusiveness of its structure from the so-called affiliate parties had the effects of spawning a narrow-based federal shared-rule, as EPRDF was the only channel to influence the centre. Like its Marxist-originated hegemonic program and democraticcentralism, the fusion of EPRDF and the state was the other setback to bring the constrain of power to the federal constitutional operation and to establish the neutrality of the state to deal with ethnic-driven conflict, as a major pathology to the stability of ethnic federal system. Finally, the power nucleus in the EPRDF created the dominance of TPLF at the perils of diminishing the representative legitimacy and the subordinate position of the affiliate parties to EPRDF.

Africa-China Relations and the Issue of South-South Cooperation

Nana Nkrumah — 2024-09-12

Africa-China or Sino-African relations continue to grow stronger. Africa sees China as a partner in development in the context of global South-South Cooperation. As a measure of friendship, China constructed the African Union headquarters at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for free. There has been cooperation between China and African countries. Moreover, China’s role in Africa during the independence struggles is well noted and its development assistance to the continent has been phenomenal over the years. As Africa and China relations continue, several bottlenecks continue to mar the relationship. This paper highlights the bottlenecks of Africa-China relations by tracing the historical ties between China and African states. It delves into Africa-China relations in terms of South-South Cooperation and China’s foreign policy of non-interference in internal matters of other states. It uses 2019 data to analyze China-Africa trade, investments and revenues accruing to both partners. The paper contributes to knowledge not just in terms of bilateral and multilateral relations but in terms of infrastructure trade and investment in Sino-African relations. It concludes that there is a need for China African relations to achieve mutual benefits.

Land Question in Post-Apartheid South Africa

Ibrahim Abdullateef — 2024-09-12

Following the end of apartheid regime in 1994, it became clear to the government that a new constitution was urgently needed in order to redistribute and restitute land. After two years of intense deliberations and consultations, a new constitution was finally adopted in 1996. The new constitution clearly spelt out the fundamental principles of land reform policy. As a result, three-legged land reform strategy was adopted. These are (i) land tenure; (ii) land restitution; and (iii) land redistribution. However, existing scholarship has shown that these land reform programmes have not really addressed the social injustices of the past. Although there has been interesting scholarship on land question in post-apartheid South Africa, most of the previous studies focus on ‘economic compensation’ rather than ‘social justice’. In attempt to fill this gap in scholarship, this paper examines land question within the theoretical prism of social justice theory. The paper analyses the concept of social justice; then, proceeded to the discussions, applications and critiques of Kurt Lewin’s three-model of social change, John Rawls’ theory of social justice and Nancy Frazer’s model of parity of participation to land question in post-apartheid South Africa.

The Fundamental Elements of Social Contract in a Developmental State

Mbulaheni Mulaudzi — 2024-09-12

The Conceptual Framework that underpins this article is that of advocating for a “Developmental state” that has the capacity to deliver services at national level but also creating a platform for the private sector to make a meaningful investment through trade and investment. The article moves from the premise that “Developmental state” should be one that is able to intervene in service delivery as well as to intervene in the running of the economy especially as it relates to the role of the private sector in driving national and international goals. It is the argument of these article that for a “Developmental state” to become functional its should be comprised of meritocratic bureaucracy that is able to make use of the interventionist power in the same way that the East Asian Countries has done. As such the article arises from the argument that although the ANC led government has declared South Africa a “Developmental state”, such a state is still faced with numerous challenges that deter it to fulfill the requirements of a “Developmental state”. The study focus will also look at the extent at which the South African state is moving towards becoming a fully-fledged “Developmental state” regardless of the challenges been experienced and encountered.

You are too Black

Mark Mngomezulu — 2024-09-12

This paper argues that xenophobia in South Africa is a result of intersecting historical, economic, and socio-political factors specific to the South African nationalist project embarked upon after independence. It will show how a confluence of the aforementioned factors in the country have, for the most part, contributed to an environment which is fertile for xenophobia and its expression through physical violence, especially towards other black Africans. This argument is significant because xenophobia is usually viewed from a resource scarcity perspective.

Elite Governance, Development, and Public Safety in Nigeria

Johnson Ayodele — 2024-09-12

Governance defines how political actors use ethical or corrupt practices to influence mass participation in political decision-making in public affairs. This article interrogates the implications of the elite monopoly of power for development and public safety in Nigeria. We anchored the study on Pareto’s circulation of elite theory. It adopts a qualitative method to collect secondary data which are content and thematically analyzed. Results indicated that the gap between the elite and the citizenry threatens the development and public safety in Nigeria. This article concludes that elitism should not only socially engage with the citizenry, but it should also reproduce egalitarian political values and actors for inclusion in Nigeria’s democratic destiny. Drawing on the values of the conceptual lions (oselu) of Pareto to scare his conceptual foxes (ojelu) vices out of political domination through electoral re-socialization could neutralize elite conspiracy against the majority and boost the capacity of vulnerable Nigerians to initiate and implement development and public safety defenses. It suggests that a true fiscal federalism predicated on ethical reorientation in politics could reinvent Nigeria, and relieve her of the burden of underdevelopment and insecurity into which elite avarice has plunged the country.

Critical Review of Medemer from Ideological Perspectives

Tefera Assefa — 2024-09-12

Medemer, both as a book and as an idea, is trapped between two extremes: admiration and rejection. Writers from both ends offer their thoughts, criticisms, and reviews of Medemer. The aim of this article is to analyze Medemer from an ideological perspective. Raising some political and policy questions about Medemer’s application is also the aim of this article. This article used a qualitative research approach and comparative and critical research methods. Secondary sources of data were used to compare Medemer with various political ideologies. Ideologically, Medemer meets the three criteria (critics of the present order, vision of the future society, and theory of change). Medemer is a “blended ideology” that combines concepts, principles, and ideas from liberalism, socialism, conservatism, and fascism. Furthermore, Medemer ideology attempted to combine concepts from opposing political ideologies and proposed it as a solution to Ethiopia’s complex sociopolitical and economic problems. Despite the government’s claim that Medemer is Ethiopia’s redeemer, several political questions remain unanswered given the country’s current situation. Therefore, the country’s complicated sociopolitical and economic problems under the regime of the Prosperity Party challenged the applicability of Medemer. Is Medemer thus the sole (or perhaps the only) instrument, policy framework, ideology, and mechanism for resolving Ethiopia’s multiple, dynamic, and complex socio-political problems? These remain a point of contention among academics and politicians.

The Spiralling of Corporate Corruption and the Plummeting of Corporate Governance and Ethical Leadership in African Institutions

Hlalele Matebese — 2024-09-12

Generally, several factors around the corporate world influence different nations technologically, socially, economically, and politically. Specifically, this paper focuses on the African continent’s politics concerning corporate corruption, corporate governance, and ethical leadership. This study aims to critically reflect on and evaluate the significance of curbing and combating corruption, promoting governance and ethics in Africa, and furthering and practising those principles. It employed a case study research design with a random sampling approach. Secondary data was analysed using content analysis, incorporating a critical assessment of relevant in depth literature reviews to attain the study objective. The study results revealed that: Unethical leaders succumb to corruption, causing Africa’s corruption to spiral out of control. Ethical leaders, on the other hand, resist corruption; African leaders and authorities should take steps to fight corruption through ethics and governance; African corporations have become increasingly corrupt; corporate governance and ethical leadership have declined in Africa; African politicians have uncurbed power to advance their private gains, and finally, African leaders need to change their mindsets and cultures to achieve economic growth. This study emphasises and reiterates the importance of dealing effectively with corporate corruption and advancing governance and ethics to benefit the African population and the continent. It further provides a broad and deeper understanding of corruption, ethics, and governance. The conceptual, strategic model provided by this study may be selected and used by African leaders, authorities, boards of directors, shareholders, and Chief Executive Officers (CEOs), as a tool to address corruption in African organisations and institutions.

We Can Fix Ourselves

Masilo Lepuru — 2024-09-12

Scholarship on Black Consciousness in the so-called post-apartheid South Africa is not as prominent as its counterpart within the
Congress tradition. The fundamental reason for this is the hegemony and pervasiveness of whiteness and its aversion to the Black Radical Tradition. Another reason is the “success” of the Congress tradition as epitomized by the ANC through its so-called negotiations to usher in an era that is compatible with its political vision of a non-racial constitutional new South Africa. It is in this sense that the intellectual and ideological marginalization of the Azanian tradition which Black Consciousness is a part of, is intimately linked to the “failure” of its political vision. In other words, the triumph of the democratisation paradigm, instead of the decolonisation paradigm (Ramose, 2005) is not only political but is also epistemological and ideological.

Township Politics

Mpho Moalamedi — 2024-09-12

The book has a black and white cover, which is like a sepia-inspired filter. This beautifully captures the era in which the picture was taken and the warmth exuded by the five seemingly happy men walking down a township street. There is a clear juxtaposition between the chosen image conveying happiness and the book title, which highlights struggles.

A Life Committed

Sbonelo Radebe — 2024-09-12

Memoirs are usually one of the best avenues to understand people’s lives. They provide a first-hand account of one’s life from different perspectives. One of the problems with them is that they are expectedly full of biases. It is difficult for a memoirist to criticize herself and reveal everything. Perhaps at first glance, this is what one might expect from a memoir of a person like Essop Pahad (1939-2023). However, it is a marvellous work that offers a reader with great historical accounts of events and life well lived. Pahad served as the Minister in the Presidency from 1999 until 2008 under former President Thabo Mbeki who wrote a foreword to this book, “I am happy to commend this educative tour through many decades of exciting struggles for our liberation and a better world, as contained in this autobiography” (p17). To have served Thabo Mbeki for such a long time and remained his close ally for years is a significant sign that Pahad was a distinguished politician and intellectual in his own right.

Educate and Skill Africa

Siphamandla Zondi — 2024-09-12

The African Union continues to be seized with the task to build the Africa we want as outlined in the African Agenda 2063. This agenda should lead to a stronger, more peaceful and more prosperous Africa. It should lead to strong and effective institutions. It should produce more responsible leadership and accountable governments across the continent. It is expected that the road to 2063 must see inclusive economic growth and development marked by the participation of small and medium size enterprises and informal entrepreneurs that Africa has in abundance. As the AU does every year, the 2024 efforts happen with emphasis on the annual theme: Educate and Skill Africa. This is meant to build on the outcomes of the United Nations global summit on Transforming Education of September 2022. This summit sought to address a global education crisis manifest in poor progress toward Sustainable Development Goal 4.