Well, we say "Sunnyside" but it is actually Ward 59 in Pretoria which includes Sunnyside, Muckleneuk and Groenkloof.
Running election campaigns is never easy. There are so many people to coordinate. Yet, it must be done!
Due to unfortunate circumstances, some would say fortunate, I was chosen as the ACDP (African Christian Democratic Party) candidate for the by-election on 28 November 2007.
The posters were ready to go up on Tuesday, 20 Nov, and a team from the Sunnyside branch, together with ACDP Cllr. Richard Dinkelmann, started putting them up. Because it started raining, they could only put up about 30 of the 150 posters we earmarked for these elections in the ward. I could not make it that night due to a death in the family on the same day.
However, I was there Wednesday night and we worked till 01:00 the next morning to get the rest of the posters up. Well done to the Sunnyside branch and the other members from our Youth Foundation that helped with this arduous task.
Saturday morning (24 Nov), with the help of these same people together with ACDP members from both the Johannesburg and Ekhuruleni regions, we set out with flyers to different areas within the ward. Two ACDP councillors came to assist in this "flyer" campaign. They are Cllr. Richard Dinkelmann from the Tshwane Metro Council and Cllr. Darrell Strydom from the Johannesburg Metro. Also, the complete Provincial Council executive was present together with some members from the Provincial Executive Committee. Thanks to all, who came to help!
Cllr. Darrel Strydom and I went to Groenkloof. He went into the suburb to drop flyers into post boxes and I stayed at the Groenkloof Shopping Mall handing out flyers and engaging with some people.
The funniest reply to my standard question of "Good morning Sir/Ma'am, Do you know about the by-election on 28 November?", was "No thank you!" Some people have standard answers to anybody that approaches them in public areas... "No thank you!" It was not like my question asked them to buy anything!
Another person said that we are dividing the vote. That is one of the best defences from many DA supporters. The only thing they still think of is that the white DA party must stand against the black ANC party. Don't people realise that when it comes to these two parties, that the only real difference between these two is the colour of skin. When it comes to the real issues, there are very few differences between these parties. In fact, skin colour aside, the DA might as well join the ANC like the old NNP did some years ago. Why continue this nonsense between these two parties when in reality they are so alike? When some people see us as dividing the vote, we, as the ACDP, see it as standing for what is right, even in the face of adversity.
Others, again DA supporters, told me that our party is too small and that we needed strong opposition to the ANC. Of course, they forgot that even the DA was small at one point. For that matter, even the ANC was small at one point.
The fact remains, even with a so-called Christian background, the people of this country still think only in terms of skin colour. However, that thinking is not just something that comes from the DA side only, where its supporters want to stop the black tide. It also comes from the ANC side where they want to further the black tide only. With all its talk of equality, the ANC still holds up the beacon of apartheid. Either to castigate whites with it for the past, or denying all equal opportunity to jobs in this country. Of course, this will have to be corrected.
Of all the political parties in this country, the ACDP is truly a party representative of the demographics of this country. When one looks at the leadership of the ACDP at national level, it quickly becomes clear that it is truly representative of the demographics of the country.
However, all ACDP supporters in Ward 59 need to vote this coming Wednesday, 28 Nov 2007.
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Sunnyside by-election
Thursday, October 11, 2007
ACDP Prez speaks out on Zimbabwe
ACDP President, Rev. Kenneth Meshoe, speaking at a meeting about the MDC, in Zimbabwe, highlights the plight of Zimbabweans and how RSA President Mbeki and the ANC are failing Zimbabweans.
Also watch Zimbabweans need liberation!
Tuesday, October 9, 2007
Biblical Democracy
So, here it is!
The first part of this question is much easier than the second and I'm sure that each of us can speedily make a list of problems. But what can we do?
This is a lot harder and for many people the answer is "Nothing", so they put their heads down, try to live their lives quietly or maybe pack up and leave the country.
For others, the advice may be: "Look at other countries and imitate them. Look to Scandinavia or other liberal systems." Others may take socialist principles to heart and try to implement them. Still others say "Everything in the past was wrong. Let's start from scratch." Or the opposite: "We want everything back the way it was!"
In this post-modern society, everyone has an opinion and a right to it. That's fine as far as it goes, but because it does away with ultimate truth and right and wrong, it makes it impossible to accurately answer the second part of our question. On the other hand, what does God, our Creator, say about the problems in our country and what can be done?If you are a Christian, you probably believe that the Bible has answers to our eternal destiny. But what about our life on earth? If you are not a Christian, are you open to look at history to see what has worked and what hasn't? Would you like to see how only democracy based on Biblical foundations can bring about the freedom and prosperity that we are seeking? If so, then I challenge you to thoughtfully read Biblical Democracy – a practical look at how principles in the Bible impact on society.
While the primary message of the Bible is certainly how sinful men and women can be reconciled to a Holy God, the secondary message is often neglected but is also important – how should we live our lives on earth in a way that honours God.
In Biblical Democracy, we seek to explore Biblical principles for government, look at opposing worldviews and reveal the problems that result from ignoring God's Word. Part 2 goes on to give an inspiring overview of how God has used individuals and governments down through the ages to fulfil His purposes. Biblical Democracy presents a well-researched synopsis of the positive influence that people of faith and courage have had on the course of history.
The book is user-friendly and full of quotes, pictures, cartoons, maps and graphs as well as footnotes, a time-line and index. It's an excellent resource for all! It's 291 pages, soft-cover and is a bargain at R78 plus R10 postage and packaging.
It has been well said that those who forget their history are doomed to repeat it so let us remind ourselves of the truth, as stated in the words of Abraham Lincoln: "It is the duty of nations as well as of men to acknowledge their dependence upon the overruling power of God… and to recognize the sublime truth, announced in the Holy Scriptures and proven by all history, that those nations only are blessed whose God is the Lord."
To order a copy of Biblical Democracy, please contact:
Deanna Cain at Signposts,
PO Box 295, Menlyn, 0063.
Tel/Fax: 012-993-2680,
E-mail: signpost@mweb.co.za Read More......
Monday, October 8, 2007
Biblical Democracy: A Review
Biblical Democracy... Two words that probably most Christians would not put together. "An oxymoron," they would say!
However, this book written by Edward Cain and his daughter Miriam Cain (who just happened to be at school with my wife many years ago), gives us a practical look at how the principles set forth in the Bible impact society around us.The book is written in two parts, Part 1 - God and Government (which in my estimation is the Cain's theory behind Biblical Democracy) and Part 2 - Foundation of Freedom (which is a look at history and how different ideas have shaped the world and countries - distinguishing between the righteous American revolution and the hideous French revolution, for instance).
Each chapter in the book starts with the objectives of the chapter. What can you expect to learn from the chapter? Right through two worldviews are contrasted: the Biblical worldview vs. the secular humanist worldview. It shows what will happen when the God of the Bible is denied His rightful place in any country (Part 1) and gives examples from history that proves the point (Part 2). On the other hand, the Cains make it clear that a nation that honour God can expect God's blessings and again they show examples from history.
It is not an exhaustive treatment of the subject of Biblical Democracy, but it certainly is a good introduction to the subject at hand.
To make its point the book gives various statistics related to the South African political scene. For instance, "the murder rate has jumped from 5 959 in 1977/78 to a high of 26 832 in 1994. More people were killed in South Africa each year (1994-1999) in criminal violence than were killed in 13 years of political violence (23 758 from 9/84 to 12/97)." They also show how South Africa outstrips the U.S.A. by far when it comes to murder rates. In South Africa the murder rate per 100,000 is 47.8 (2002 - 21,738 murders)) while in the U.S.A. it is only 5.7 per 100,000 (1999 - 15,500 murders). It also provides us with rape conviction statistics. In 1988 27.1% of reported rapes resulted in convictions whereas by 2000 only 7.6% of reported rapes resulted in convictions!
Anyone who would like to learn more about why Christians should get involved in the political process must read this book, at least as an introduction!
This book can be bought directly from the author, or if you are going to the National Annual General Convention of the ACDP this year from 1-3 November, you will be able to purchase a copy of the book there. I still need to confirm whether Miriam Cain, one of the author's, will be there herself.
Update: 9 Oct 2007
Miriam Cain will probably be at the NAGC on the last day of the convention: 3 Nov 2007.
Sunday, September 30, 2007
Street name changes
It is that time again in the Tshwane Metro Council! Name changes!
This time it is name changes to streets. I suppose that whenever one group has majority rule over another, it would like to bring about changes. Especially in a situation like we have had in South Africa with apartheid rule until 1994 and then the take over by the ANC in government. As we know, they have brought about many changes in the country. Many towns have had their names changed, such as Pietersburg to Polokwane.
Then there is the current issue about the Pretoria-Tshwane name change controversy.
Just last Thursday, 27 September 2007, the Tshwane Metro Council met and probably the biggest issue of the day was that of changing the names to several streets in the city. At this meeting, the Council accepted recommendations to change the names of the following streets: Church, Zambezi, Pretorius, Schoeman, Van der Walt, Andries, DF Malan, Prinsloo, General Louis Botha, Skinner, Jacob Mare, Walker/Charles, Queen Wilhemina, Mears/Beatrix/Voortrekkers, Hendrik Verwoerd, Hans Strijdom, Mitchell, Esselen, Vermeulen, Schubart, Potgieter, Paul Kruger, Proes, Michael Brink and Duncan.
The ACDP does not have a problem with street name changes per se. What we have a problem with is that some street names recommended for change, belonged to people that really did not have anything to do with the previous apartheid system in this country! Such as "Paul Kruger [who] had absolutely nothing to do with apartheid policies. [He] did not even know the meaning of that word those days," said ACDP councillor AnneMarie Sparg in a speech to the Council.
Cllr. Sparg further said, "There are several ways of dealing with any issue. One way could be confrontational and not budging an inch. This mostly results in damaged relationships. And another way is to compromise and work together in an atmosphere of reconciliation and love. This mostly results in a win win situation with a stronger unity to move forward for the better of any relationship and situation. The struggle is over and we all live in freedom, African and Afrikaner."
In a speech to the Council, ACDP Councillor Richard Dinkelmann said, "The
ACDP stands for reconcilliation and nation building. Our national symbols, such as our flag and the national anthem are symbols of this reconcilliation, because they recognise the old as well as the new. 'Nkosi Sikelele' is sung alongside 'Uit die blou van onse hemel'. This symbolises respect and taking hands in a mutual endeavour to build this nation together. This attempt by the ANC to change the names of the streets in our inner city has in our opinion the potential to divide the people in the city and stir up unnecessary emotions. Having said that, we do agree that names such as Hendrik Verwoerd and Hans Strydom should be considered for change - and maybe some others that are not on the list, that could be offensive. At the same time, we cannot see why Church Street, Zambezi Drive, van der Walt Street, etc. have to be considered for new names."
Cllr. Dinkelmann also said, that the ACDP believes "that this is an attempt by the ANC to gain favour from the electorate and to try to take their attention away from the real issues," like poor service delivery, shocking customer service and continuing growth in arrear debts.
Executive mayor Dr Gwen Ramokgopa, of the ANC, said that the ANC-led council cannot do as it pleases with regard to the name changes and must consult with the community. ANC councillor Joe Mkhize said that the council will let the public participate in this regard. He further stated, that instead of adopting a recommendation of getting at least 51 percent of registered voters living in a street to agree in writing to a street name change, the ANC will involve all residents in the Tshwane metro area. He then contradicted everything he and the executive mayor had said by stating, "We are saying, come with us, let's change the names. If you do not want to, we will do it on our own."
Mkhize stated exactly what South Africans have experienced since the ANC came into power. Consult with the community, then go ahead with the plan anyway, whether the community agrees or not. We have seen that with its laws on abortion, pornography and the law on same-sex marriage. This is now going to happen in our beautiful city too, it seems! Democracy is good to the ANC only as long as it benefits from it, otherwise it is autocracy!
Are we going to lose some of the names that the ACDP believes should not be changed? We will have to wait and see.
I believe that the list of names should be shortened to only the names of streets that belonged to apartheid architects and perpetrators. Names that really have historical significance should be left intact, or does the ANC think that only their history has any significance?
The aim of this council should be that of reconciliation, not division. Changing street names without thinking very hard about the consequences of those changes will certainly not bring reconciliation!
Instead of changing street names, why not get down to the real business of any city council, provide services to the people it serves! Or, has the ANC forgotten that they are here to serve and not rule? That is the meaning of democracy!
Monday, September 10, 2007
Zille arrest is cowardly
ACDP President, Kenneth Meshoe, said that it is cowardly of the police to arrest innocent people instead of criminals. He said this after hearing of the arrest of the DA leader, Helen Zille.
Read More......Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Tshwane Metro Council ventures further towards racism
I learned today that the Tshwane Metro Council has decided to refuse to do small business transactions for goods less than R30 000, with white businesses.
They can call it BEE, affirmative action (AA), or even racism. It all amounts to the same thing. It is one thing to let all people tender for business and then to choose a black supplier from among equal tenders, but to simply exclude white businesses based on the colour of their skin is summed up in one word: racism.
Fourteen years ago, if any business or government entity excluded black businesses in this fashion, the whole world would have cried: "RACISM!" But, I guess, in this new politically correct world we live in, black exclusivity is about black pride, not racism! It is about empowerment, not racism!
If this government, especially the Tshwane Metro Council wants to establish a city of mutual respect, it will have to start right at the top.
This reverse racism shows absolutely no respect to those that are being disadvantaged by these new rules, no matter what form it takes.
But, then a charge of hypocrisy will be completely wasted on those who are perpetrating this new evil! In their minds, if blacks discriminate against whites it is called "fair discrimination" while if whites discriminate against blacks, it is simply called racism!
It is such a pity our constitution is so vague on the issue of discrimination. Section 9, in Chapter 2 - Bill of Rights, speaks several times of "unfair discrimination." It also speaks of "fair discrimination." However, these two phrases are never quantified, or clearly defined. "National legislation must be enacted to prevent or prohibit unfair discrimination." The problem here is that the constitution has no way of determining what fair or unfair discrimination is.
Therefore, when the Tshwane Metro Council determines that whites may no longer participate in small business transactions with the Metro, it clearly seems that the constitution has no answer to that. It is also clear that the ruling party will not enact new laws to prohibit such practices and so define clearly what "unfair discrimination" is in a logically consistent manner.
The voters of this country must start speaking through their votes against this racism, and vote for a party--the ACDP--that will truly represent the people of this country.
As the capital city of South Africa, bad policies in Pretoria can truly have a negative effect for the whole of the country on so many fronts.
I would like to call on the Tshwane Metro Council to rescind this immoral decision. Rather let true business competition grow in the capital than entrenching more racism!
Update (6-Sept-2007):
Read the response from ACDP Cllr. AnneMarie Sparg of the Tshwane Metro in her media release to the news of this newfound racism in the Metro!
Saturday, September 1, 2007
Floor-Crossing: No Ethics Involved
As the current Secretary General for the ACDP in the Tshwane region, floor-crossing is of great concern to me. In fact, it should be at the heart of every ethical politician or wanna-be politician.
I know, many think that the very phrase "ethical politician" is an oxymoron! However, that is not the actual fact among all politicians. The reason why so many think that it is an oxymoron, is simply because the news media hardly ever reports on the good many politicians are doing. Look at the issues facing the Minister of Health, Dr. Manto Tshabalala-Msimang and former Deputy-President, Jacob Zuma.
Yet, it is possible to have ethical politicians driven by strong moral convictions. The ACDP is involved on this front, making every effort to ensure that its members and POBs act with strong moral convictions. However, every year at this time, some decide to cross the floor to other parties.
Floor-crossing is one of the most unethical political devices that our current government has come up with. Aside from the legalisation of abortion, pornography, homosexual marriage and a host of other evil and immoral laws, this law on floor-crossing has stolen the trust of people all over South Africa, in the political process.
Floor-crossing literally has pulled the carpet from under our political process. The fact is, if floor-crossing as we currently have it continues, it definitely makes a mockery of our elections. Why would people vote for a person of a particular party just to see that person walk over with the people's vote to another party? Why bother voting if you think that some unethical politician will steal your votes and hand them over to another party?
The ACDP has decided that in order to be ethical on all fronts, we will not even allow a person from another party to cross the floor to us! The fact is, if we do not believe that this law is acceptable, we should not participate in it at any level. If a person is willing to leave another party with the seat that was voted for by that person's constituency, then we as the ACDP would not be willing to accept that person and his seat simply because he is proving by his actions to be unethical. The very type of person that we do not want to represent us.
Obviously, there are many reasons why people would want to walk over from one party to another. The point is, a person (POB) who wants to cross the floor should do it right. My own suggestion to anyone who desires to leave the ACDP--I don't deny that there are such people--should do the ethical thing at this point. That would be to resign his position as POB, resign from the party, and then walk over to the other party empty handed.
Why do I think so? A seat held by a POB does not belong to the person, but to the party, and therefore the POB has no right to take with him that which does not belong to him. This will be stealing! As Christians, this does not just go against our own consciences, but it violates the very law of God.
Further, when a Christian, walking away from the ACDP to another party, especially a party that stands diametrically opposed to Christian ethics and the Christian Worldview, now suddenly crosses the line into what would have been termed "enemy ground" before! How can a Christian walk away from a party that stands for everything Godly, turn his back on what he claimed to have believed before and now stand with that which he wholeheartedly disagreed before? Parties that stand for ungodly principles! Has God changed His mind? I do not think so!
Obviously we cannot presume to know what floor-crossers have in their hearts, only they know, and they know that they have to answer to God.
If any ACDP POBs in the Tshwane region decide to defect to other parties, I would sincerely request them to do the Christian thing, and that would be to first resign from the council, and then defect. It would be the right thing to do.
Friday, August 31, 2007
Electoral System and Accountability: Options for South Africa
ADDRESS BY STEVEN SWART ACDP MP
AT THE CONFERENCE ON
ELECTORAL SYSTEM AND ACCOUNTABILITY: OPTIONS FOR SOUTH AFRICA
HOSTED BY THE KONRAD-ADENAUER-STIFTUNG
AND THE ELECTORAL INSTITUTE OF SOUTHERN AFRICA (IESA)
TUESDAY 28 AUGUST 2007
VINEYARD HOTEL, CAPE TOWN
Master of Ceremonies, Dr Werner Boehler, fellow MP's, MPL's, foreign guests, representatives of academic institutions and the media, may I firstly thank the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung and the Electoral Institute of Southern Africa for hosting this event and for the kind invitation to participate on this panel.
The South African Constitution determines that our 400 members of parliament must be elected in terms of an electoral system that "results in general, in proportional representation". There is a worldwide trend towards such systems as they are regarded as being eminently fair and reflect the will of the voters most accurately. They are particularly useful in emerging democracies as they are inclusive.
Our present system is a two-tier, one ballot, with nine multi-member constituency (200 representatives) compensatory system. It is not a straight PR system as we have nine MMC's and one national list.
The ACDP is on record as supporting the retention of the proportional list system for the immediate future. We appreciate concerns expressed regarding accountability and are thus prepared to consider other electoral models in the long-term as our democracy deepens and becomes more stable. We, too, are opposed to floor-crossing and joined the UDM and the IFP in the Constitutional Court battle. We support electoral reform to do away with floor-crossing in its entirety.
James and Hadland have identified four values that are inherent in our constitutional order and electoral system; namely fairness, inclusivity, simplicity and accountability.
Tom Lodge summarised each as follows:
"Fairness relates to those aspects of the system that ensure that every vote is of equal value and that the parties are treated fairly in their representation in parliament. Inclusivity refers to the need for a system to be as all-embracing as possible in terms of drawing in groups across the political spectrum to induce shared goals and shared values between them. The system should also be inclusive through ensuring that all groups, however, they may be defined, are represented within legislatures. The system should be simple, open and easy to understand."
INCLUSIVITY
There can be no doubt that the present system is inclusive. Rather have far left wing and far right wing representatives in parliament than throwing stones outside parliament. Small parties have the best chance of representation since all votes cast for them country-wide are taken into account.
It is significant that the Constitutional Court in over ruling the Electoral Court's decision and allowing the ACDP to contest last year's municipal elections in Cape Town emphasised the principle of inclusivity and enfranchisement as opposed to exclusion and disenfranchisement.
It would be premature in our nation's development and, with a history of exclusion, it is all the more necessary to retain maximum representation of voices. With all the more fractures in our social fabric, and lack of social cohesion - as indicated in the succession battle - no sector, be it demographic minorities or political minorities should feel excluded from the process. The principle of inclusivity is thus almost a guarantee of political stability - particularly where certain sectors feel more and more marginalized.
SIMPLICITY
The system is simple - with voters understanding the system/ballot paper well and the percentage of spoilt votes has been low. The one comment in our experience has been the confusion between the African Christian Democratic Party and the United C hristian Democratic Party. The IEC in our view should not have allowed the registration of a similar named party that has led to confusion with voters and many spoilt ballots.
Much has been said regarding accountability. However, I would like to touch on the core values of inclusivity and simplicity. During the ETT Review Roundtable in 2002, an elections administrator commented that the local government elections were anything but simple, and were in effect ‘extremely difficult'. He indicated that they struggled in terms of voter education to explain the system to people and that in his experience the majority of people still do not understand the combination system used, and that this contributed to the very low voter turn-out during the local government elections.
As a practical example, we, as the ACDP, were obliged to approach the Constitutional Court last year after we were excluded from contesting Cape Town after a technical hitch in the registration process. Regrettably, neither the IEC nor five Electoral Court judges were prepared to assist us, and we were obliged to approach the Constitutional Court at great cost and on an extremely urgent basis. The Court, disagreeing with both the IEC and the Electoral Court, held that foundational constitutional values of section 1 require a court to seek " to promote enfranchisement rather than disenfranchisement and participation rather than exclusion." It held in fact that the ACDP complied with all statutory provisions of Municipal Electoral Act, 27 of 2000. I'm aware of various other parties that were disqualified at the registration stage.
The point is that our two - tier system with SMC's and a national compensatory closed list at local government level is quite complex, and the majority report's proposed MMC would require 69 separate constituency lists (300 names) and a national list of 100 names. The report states that " (T)o achieve the same results as with the current system would require careful planning on the part of political parties but there is no inherent reason why the result could not be as successful."
We need to take care that we do not over compensate for accountability and risk simplicity and inclusivity.
FAIRNESS
The system is fair, which is a fundamental requirement of legitimacy. There is a direct relationship between support gained and seats allocated.
An election must be conducted on the basis of rule s and procedures that are fair and just which will form the basis of the electorate's acceptance of an outcome. The rule of natural justice must be applied.
An administrative body must act fairly, implying acting within the rules of natural justice ie giving an interested party an opportunity to be heard before a decision is made and the decision maker being unbiased.
The ACDP trusts that the requirements of "enfranchisement rather than disenfranchisement and participation rather than exclusion" as laid down by the Constitutional Court in our matter will be followed by the IEC when considering alleged non-compliance with electoral provisions.
ACCOUNTABILITY
As we have heard today, the main criticism of our proportional list system is the lack of accountability of MP's to constituencies with MP's being accountable to their party and not to the electorate. The party then has to account to the electorate for its performance and that of its MP's.
There should however be a duality of accountability - MP's being accountable to both one's political party and to one's voters. We agree that the link between members and voters must be improved to ensure that people do not feel alienated. The question is how?
In the Justice Portfolio Committee, we are at present considering the Constitution Thirteenth Amendment Bill and the Cross-Boundary Municipalities law Repeal and Related Matters Amendment Bill to deal with the consequences of the Constitutional Court challenge by Matatiele Municipality resulting in the striking down of the Constitution Twelfth Amendment Act 2005 and the Cross-Boundary Municipalities Laws Repeal and Related Matters Act 23 of 2005 du e to a failure by the Kwazulu- Natal Legislature to hold public hearings on the matter.
Matatiele residents felt excluded from the process and had to go to the Constitutional Court to have their objections heard. How do they now hold their elected representatives at Provincial and National (NCOP) level accountable for the decisions taken and to be taken following new public hearings to be held, or do they have to wait for the next election.
Would the proposed model result in greater pressure being brought to bear on elected representatives? In this case elected representatives in the Kwazulu- Natal provincial legislature did not hold public hearings on a matter relating to provincial boundaries being redrawn.
It was common cause during the ETT Review Roundtable that an electoral system of whatever kind cannot solve the problem of accountability. It can at best contribute to it in some way.
As Adv Pansy Tlakula, the Chief electoral officer at the Electoral Commission has said, "an electoral system on its own cannot make elected representatives accountable. At best, it can be a conduit through which the people can hold their elected representatives accountable."
Dr van Zyl Slabbert made an important point when he said, "We soon realised that we were not going to sacrifice the benefits of the current electoral system in pursuit of the ideal concept of accountability, because we do not know what that is."
What should we learn from Khutsong where constituency -elected ANC ward councillors have been forced out of the West rand township. Surely violence can never be condoned - but was this not a case of disgruntled voters whose desire to choose to which province they would belong was not being considered at provincial and national representatives.
As far as the ACDP is concerned, we are familiar with SMC's and PR and the MMC's at national level (regional representation). We would need to explore the implications of any theoretical model to ensure that it resulted in the same representation we enjoy under the present system to ensure INCLUSIVITY. We need to be very careful that inclusivity and diversity are not traded off against accountability.
Smaller parties or parties representing special interests must be catered for in a system that ensures that all votes cast country-wide are taken into account.
The majority report of the Electoral Task Team indicated that the practical effect of the proposed model of multi-member constituencies (nine provincial constituencies expanded to some 69 to elect 300 seats) with a compensatory closed national list providing 100 seats, will result in the same representation of smaller parties.
If the proposed model strikes the balance between accountability and core values of fairness, inclusivity and simplicity, then this is indeed a model that warrants serious consideration.
For the immediate future, however, the ACDP believes that the status quo should be retained.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Pretoria name confusion
Confusion confusion...!
Pretoria is the name of the City and the Municipality is called the Tshwane Metro.
Tshwane Metro is not a geographic place name.
One must be careful not to confuse the geographic area name with the name of the City.
Pretoria was first called Petoriusdorp – a little later, someone with knowledge of Latin suggested the name Pretorium. To the relief of many the name Pretoria was finally adopted.
The first suburb of Pretoria was Arcadia on the foot of Meintjieskop, on which the Union Buildings were built. Pretoria became a municipality in 1903.
After the creation of new municipal structures across South Africa in 2000, the name Tshwane was adopted for the Metropolitan Municipality that includes Pretoria and surrounding towns. 13 Municipalities were joined together to form the City of Tshwane Metropolitan Municipality.
In this Tshwane Metro we have several suburbs, to name a few, Pretoria, Brooklyn and Menlo Park.
Many years ago other places such as Lyttleton, Irene, Silverton, Eersterus and Mamelodi were registered as place names. Some of these places were in the Pretoria Municipality and Lyttleton and Irene were in the Centurion Municipality.
Then all the municipalities were combined and we now have one municipality called the Tshwane Metro and in the Tshwane Metro we have a place or city called Pretoria.
Monday, August 13, 2007
New beginnings for ACDP Tshwane
The Tshwane Metropolitan Council covers something like 13 previous councils and municipalities.
We here in Tshwane, as the ACDP executive committee for the region, would love to highlight issues relating to the region, and perhaps other issues that are not directly related to the region, but are still on the minds of the people of this region.
I thought that while we were waiting for the others who were designated to also write on this blog to actually answer the call for subscription to the writers' guild here at this blog, that I would simple write an introduction for this blog. Nothing fancy! Just something to start the blog with.
Everything you need to know about the ACDP you can find at its national website. At this website national issues are dealt with as well as the party's policies. ACDP Tshwane also has a website, which deals with mostly regional issues. Both of these links can be found in the sidebar on the right.
Currently, the following people will write for this blog.
L to R: Cllr. Richard Dinkelmann, Cllr. AnneMarie Sparg, Cllr. Derrick KissoonduthAnd, then there is myself!
William Dicks
We also have two guys from the Tshwane ACDP Youth Foundation that will write for us, but I do not have pictures for them. You will have to meet them when they do write.
I suppose that it is enough for a quick introduction.
Written by me, you know... William!
