By Zukile Majova
Political Editor
This is the message that is at the heart of the new political party Rise Mzansi which insists South Africa’s current democracy is a sham.
The electoral system where voters elect a political party and the party insiders decide among themselves who should be a Member of Parliament cuts the power of the voters.
Under this system, politicians are accountable to their political parties and not to the voters.
Rise Mzansi founder Songezo Zibi was in Kimberly in the Northern Cape at the weekend, going door-to-door educating potential voters about the “real power of the voter”.
“Politicians should work for the citizens instead of the citizens working for them,” he said.
“When politicians walk into a stadium or community hall, they expect us to rise for them. Why?”
He said this was a clear indication that politicians think they are above the people.
Next month, the party is due to hold its first public convention to consolidate its policies and draft its election manifesto ahead of the 2024 elections.
“Since April we have held hundreds of meetings with South Africans in all nine provinces. In these meetings, people tell us their hopes and dreams for themselves, their families, communities and for South Africa.”
On Wednesday, Rise Mzansi held a media briefing on the state of readiness for their convention on 6 October.
He said the entire ethos of the party and its strategy will be informed by the responses they have received from community outreach programmes.
“South Africans talk about the hunger stalking the land, the drug epidemic enveloping villages
and townships, and taking families to breaking point,” said Zibi.
“They speak in real terms about the mental health struggles they deal with, with no public health support in most communities. They talk about the suicides, the depression and the sense of despair,” said Zibi.
Rise Mzansi is one of the parties that are expected to emerge as kingmakers in the provinces such as KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng where no party is likely to get a clear majority in the 2024 elections.
Pictured above: Rise Mzansi founder Songezo Zibi updates the media ahead of the party’s convention next month
Image source: @Rise_Mzansi
