Dr FM Lucky Mathebula Throughout history, the US has consistently exerted its influence on other democracies, employing a range of strategies from soft power, where it asserts ideational superiority, to hard power, where it dictates policy options through it hard power. This pattern of behaviour underscores the extent to which the [...]

TimeLive 29 January 2025South Africa is entering an age of post-liberation rhetoric and politics, a bewildering new phase that necessitates adaptive leadership. A political party's unique value proposition will determine the patterns of voter attraction strategies, ushering in a future of hope and inspiration. The age of post-liberation rhetoric politics [...]

South Africa's history is a tale of profound injustice, often untold. It's a narrative of state-sponsored land confiscation from Indigenous people, a story of wars fought over land dispossession and its defence. The basis of commerce is the state's use of land as a resource for development, which was unjustly [...]

1.   This year is the 70th Anniversary of the Congress of the People, which posited one of the permanent visions about South Africa: the Freedom Charter, "the cornerstone of the RSA Constitution."    2.   The government's posture and approach are to implement the Constitution, including what instructed its existence. Fundamental [...]

Published in TimesLive of 15 January 2025At his Reconciliation Day speech on 16 December 2024, President Ramaphosa announced that the National Dialogue would be held in 2025. He would appoint a panel of eminent persons and a steering committee to facilitate its realisation. In its annual 08 January 2025 Statement, [...]

This was published in TimesLive on 22 January 2025The January 2025 NEC's intense discussions about the election performance and related matters in KZN and Gauteng unofficially mark the beginning of the ANC succession battle journey towards December 2027. The consequential 2026 local government elections, which should be the preoccupation of any imaginable [...]

In less than 24 months, the ANC and the Tripartite Alliance, a historical coalition that shaped the theoretical dimensions of the anti-colonial and anti-apartheid struggle, had transitioned from a dominant force to the brink of a monumental crisis. The significant loss of 68 seats in Parliament, reducing their performance from [...]

Published in TimesLive of 09 January 2025In recent history, it was unimaginable to think of a movement that has lost as much influence in as short a time as the African National Congress. Until May 2024, it was arguably the nexus of RSA political life. Yet, in months, the edifice [...]

President Ramaphosa campaigned for his reelection based on a New Dawn for South Africa. The anchor pillar of his presidency was managing a trust deficit between South Africans and convening a dialogue that would culminate into a social compact. The New Dawn included stemming the tide of corruption and its [...]

Published in the Sunday Times 05 January 2025With the proliferation of illegal mining, unregulated street vendors, unregistered doorstep retail outlets, and other signs of functional decay, the urgency of the situation in South Africa cannot be overstated. The continued disregard for laws and systems paints a picture of a country [...]