The webinar, marked by active audience participation, began with de Jager presenting her latest paper, "Has the African National Congress lost touch with its people? The party over people." De Jager highlighted the decline in ANC's electoral support to 28% of the voting-eligible population in 2019, accompanied by a loss of trust in the party and its leaders. She argued that the chasm between the party and the people is evident using three indicators: a decline in social support, trust and satisfaction with performance. Her explanation for this is that the ANC has reached back into its socialist tradition and not the founding, constitutionalist tradition – evident in the vanguard party, the National Democratic Revolution, partisan governance, and cadre deployment.
The following debate was an exciting one and saw the two - under the direction of Davis - discussing the socialistic background of the ANC and in what way the ANC may have lost its compass with the people. Mbeki challenged de Jager's view on low election turnout, attributing it to the unattractiveness of opposition parties. De Jager acknowledged the role of the opposition but emphasized the ANC's predominant influence. To her, there are many good options out there but ANC dominates the social discourse due to its advantage in funding and reach. She urged people to embrace the democratic idea: to vote if one is unhappy with the party in power.
The webinar ended with a short but interactive Q&A session. Thanks to all participants and the engaged audience for a fruitful discussion.
