(University of the Free State, 2006) De Jager, Nicola
English: In South Africa’s new democracy two trends are becoming apparent: political centralisation
and the weakening of agents of political accountability. The article argues,
first, that these trends are the result of the South African government’s use of two forms
of co-optive power, namely institutional centralisation and dispositional centralisation.
Secondly, contending that these trends are merely the fruits of deeper roots,
the article seeks to identify these roots by “digging deeper”. Primary documents emanating
from South Africa’s ruling party, the ANC, have been studied to understand
these trends. It is concluded that the current centralisation results from a deliberate
striving towards ideological hegemony.