Page 161 - Risk Report 2024

IRMSA
161
RISK REPORT 2024/25

11.4 National Government

Culture

In the wake of the national election, SA’s democracy must find a
new way of governing itself. In the absence of a definite majority
for any specific political party, a functional government (which
will necessarily comprise of varying policy views) must start to
deliver on its mandate within the shortest possible time.

South African citizens must be uncompromising on the following
imperatives from their appointed parliamentary members:
• Take direct accountability and responsibility for joint
decisions in the interest of transparency and service
outcomes.
• Avoid power struggles which will compromise decision-
making and outcomes and will paralyse the democratic
system.
• Be deliberate about reaching consensus on policy issues
through compromise of party objectives in the national
interest.
• Embed robust checks and balances to avoid compromising
the democratic process in coalition structures.
• Agree on delivery focused portfolios and competent people,
instead of ideological or budget/spend considerations.
• Proactively embed conflict resolution mechanisms with
robust escalation methods based on transparent coalition
agreements with legally binding outcomes (including
collaboration on issues versus blanket support).
• Deliberately work to embed professional administrative
capabilities in the system that are independent from
political patronage (i.e. the State must function irrespective
of who is appointed to lead it).
• Work constructively with organised labour to hold public
servants accountable instead of aligning with political
parties.
• Be deliberate about prioritising SA’s interests above
historical international relationships.
• Embed risk management in all State departments and
SOEs with performance monitoring and proper governance
oversight.