Fundamentally, the problem is that the ANC’s system of internal democracy, which may have served it well during the struggle years, does not suit a modern political party that also has a mandate to govern. The party passes detailed resolutions every five years, which the government is then expected to implement, but these are increasingly the product of an extremely politically polarised process involving ideologically divided factions and alliance partners. The winning faction among a mere 4,000 or so delegates ostensibly representing ANC branches not only gets the top positions but is heavily influential in determining the policies that will steer the country for five years.
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