The dilemma of RSA leadership succession

Published in TimesLive 26 March 2025: In search of Mandela: the urgent dilemma of SA leadership succession

The leadership question in South Africa is again coming into the spotlight as society considers who will lead the country after Ramaphosa. The infamous "we all have smallanyana skeletons in the closet" resonates whenever the discourse on leadership succession arises. We ask how smallanyana is ‘so-and-so’s” skeleton in the closet so that we can entrust the country to them. As the GNU advances deep into the intricacies of governing and understanding that all of humanity is fallible, this question can now be asked across the board without giving it a domicile.

 

As the oldest liberation movement in Africa and a key player in South African politics, the ANC continues to shape our understanding of leadership. However, the shift in power dynamics has introduced new players, altering our leadership perspective. The closets of GNU partners are now part of our search destinations, marking a significant change in our approach to leadership succession.

 

The greatest lesson from the Phala Phala foreign currency cash discovered in furniture is that, regarding smallanyana skeletons, many seemingly sensible ideas, in theory, do not effectively translate into practice. The natural networks of corruptors, typically concentrated in the private sector, are closely linked to political power. The Trump executive order that eases deterrence against corruption will introduce sophisticated and extractive corruption on scales that might render the Zondo Commission Report comparable to a kindergarten fairy tale.

 

Typically, leadership debates in conventional societies concentrate on the moral intelligence of those who raise their hands to indicate they wish to lead. Moral intelligence denotes the non-arbitrary ability of leaders to distinguish right from wrong based on universal principles. Nevertheless, leadership has evolved to encompass the skills, knowledge, and attributes necessary for action rather than merely knowing what is right—in other words, moral capability. Moral competence is never part of the moment of truth when leaders are selected in politics. It is a vocation not known for honesty and veracity when people are declared ‘our’ candidate’.

 

The moral capability index of RSA leadership has been declining for some time. Suppose the corruption and its associated state capture, along with investigation and commission of inquiry reports from the last four decades, are regarded as authoritative. In that case, South Africa has witnessed a peculiar and dominant breed of leaders rising to influential societal positions. This occurs despite the presence of human areas of moral intelligence and capability, which have served as beacons through which the constitutional and democratic order can find illumination in various corners where proper breaths can be taken. 

 

South Africa's Struggle with Leadership Accountability: A Historical Narrative Weighing Heavily on the Present 

 

After constructing the nation to prioritise democracy, human dignity, social and economic justice, and the respect, promotion, protection, and fulfilment of the Bill of Rights, new denials of crisis began to emerge as acceptable leadership conduct. The violations and denials of human rights experienced in South Africa towards societies in neighbouring Zimbabwe were not viewed as a crisis. The loss of life during the HIV and AIDS pandemic was addressed in a manner that signalled it was not a national emergency, thereby influencing the general attitude of healthcare professionals towards deaths occurring in hospital beds. 

 

The promotion of leaders who have admitted under oath to engaging in sexual relations, where one party characterised the act as non-consensual, raises serious concerns. Despite the negative perception of leadership in the case addressed by the Presidency of the ANC and the implications for the nation, society has been presented with these individuals as role models. As revelations concerning their interactions and transactions highlighted issues of corruption, characteristics of state capture, or general discrepancies with various laws and the accountability framework, those implicated were rewarded with further terms in leadership. The villain-victim-hero paradigm for legitimising leadership is firmly established. 

 

Law enforcement became a victim of political power. Agencies that could unearth evidence through prosecution-led investigations were stripped of the power to guarantee convictions at the altar of misapplied innocent interpretations until proven guilty. Talent was eradicated from law enforcement agencies, and the criminal underworld engaged with rogue elements within the criminal justice system to such an extent that South Africa began to exhibit sophisticated traits of the proverbial Mad Max state. Morally intelligent and capable law enforcement officers emerged as a form of leadership whose survival depended on contexts where public service integrity management systems align with the rule of law. 

 

The well-known Thuli Madonsela-as-Public Protector Report recommended the establishment of a commission of inquiry to investigate the state capture that occurred during the fourth and fifth administrations, marking a significant turning point. It revealed the hidden corruption and turmoil, which was predicted as ‘hell would break loose’ if the closets were opened and the smallanyana skeletons emerged. 

 

As the State of Capture Commission's revelations unfolded, the question of who would lead South Africa became more pressing. With many of the majority party leaders allegedly involved in the corruption discussed by the commission, the country's future leadership was thrown into uncertainty. The ANC President's acknowledgement of a consistent number one accused in the corruption dock further underscored the potential impact of these investigations on our leadership.

 

The revelations about the Phala Phala foreign currency cash and the acknowledgement that money is typically kept on the farm have significantly influenced our perception of leadership. These revelations, along with the sealing of in-party funding files for the 2017 elective conference of the ANC, have intensified the public's scrutiny of potential leaders and the moral standards we expect of them. 

 

The liquidation of moral competence as a criterion for leadership selection has placed the world in a moral conundrum. The types of leaders who represent global power and the international order have exacerbated the leadership crisis. When executive orders retract deterrence against global corruption, its resurgence will undermine moral competence as the foundation of leadership. The private sector's profit bottom line, which was warming up to a worldwide anti-corruption governance system and c-suite integrity management systems, may potentially yield to the criminality upon which corruption relies. The rule of law, the sovereignty of anti-corruption legal instruments, and the capacity of weaker democracies to combat the global scourge of corruption are grievously weakened by the new types of leadership taking centre stage globally. 

The morality of survival of the fittest, which is gaining prominence, will provide valuable insights into the RSA Ramaphosa succession battles. The reduced funding of anti-corruption initiatives is already silencing the moral voices opposing renewed regional conflicts. The increasing aversion to being told the truth is a cancer that may precipitate new global genocides and indiscriminate land dispossessions. Removing the globally agreed instruments for combating anti-corruption will render any values leaders pursue neither moral nor immoral. The moral significance of values, especially when we face decisions with moral consequences, is effectively undermined by a low moral intelligence quotient and diminishing moral competence. The mix of personal gain and the monopoly of state power is not a reliable foundation when issues of societal leadership succession are at stake. The harsh reality is that South Africa is confronting its leadership succession race, and moral competence is not included in the selection criteria.