2024 Elections: Does it matter who wins the poll if South Africa loses the rule of law?

A standout feature of this year’s election is that it coincides with a tipping point in criminality. What does it matter who wins the poll if the country loses the rule of law?

If we cannot enforce the law then in effect we cede government to the criminals. 

Some would say this has, to a large extent, already happened – that in large parts of the country criminal gangs are the de facto government, not elected officials.  A new report published by the Global Initiative Against Organised Crime suggests Cape Town’s extortion economy is becoming endemic to multiple economic sectors, filling a vacuum created by inadequate policing.

Extortion is a global phenomenon, but it has found fertile ground in the under-resourced – and some would say under-governed – Cape flats where just a few weeks ago two guards were shot dead while escorting City staff to repair a sewer pipe.

Not only is this level of crime traumatic to those directly affected, it further corrodes the fabric of a society already fractured and in need of healing. Service delivery and economic growth are fundamental to our future prospects, but they depend upon a functioning criminal justice system.

Any election manifesto that fails to adequately address this critical point is not worth even a single vote.

In addition to destroying business confidence, extortion adds enormous cost to the economy; the City of Cape Town spent more than R8,5 million on private security escorts to effect service delivery in the 2023/24 financial year, according to media reports. This is budget that could be spent on critical infrastructure.

Extortion has also taken root in sectors critical to our economic well-being, notably transport and construction, according to the Global Initiative report. It is also deeply entrenched in the township economy where many business stakeholders are marooned in a parallel power structure of crime bosses and their foot soldiers.

South Africa travelled a long road to achieve a constitution based on human rights and the rule of law; if we do not do more to safeguard a peaceful future, we risk slipping back into the violent patterns of the past.  

As we head into election month, the Cape Chamber reiterates its call for citizens to help shape the society they wish for themselves and future generations.

John Lawson
CEO of the Cape Chamber of Commerce and Industry