President Jacob Zuma is fed up with South Africa's constitutional democracy. In comments at the ANC's policy conference he lashed out at opposition parties for challenging government decisions in court. He could have also added his bitter frustration in having to fend off court challenges against him. But, that would have been too self-serving even for our president.
The court challenges, according to Zuma, undermine the government from implementing its policies, and flies in the face of his understanding of democracy. In Zuma's world constitutional democracy is unworkable, because "you can't do anything". . . So that, in a sense, [democracy] undermines simple logic that the majority rules. . . "
Zuma is street smart, but when it comes to the workings of democracy he is as dumb as a rock. To him the fact that the ANC is the majority of the electorate gives his government the right to place its interests above all else. That being so, the courts have no business in challenging government decisions.
There are now rumblings for the party to review the Constitution to emasculate the courts. It seems history will be repeating itself.
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