The time has surely come for a no-confidence motion in the incumbent government

Your columnist, Bhekisisa Mncube, in his “Letter to Mahlamba Ndlopfu: GNU – No Value Added” (Daily Maverick, 3 May 2025), harshly criticises the creation of and lack of progress made by the GNU.

There is undoubtedly a growing realisation among South Africans of different political persuasions, colours and creeds that the current state of governance in South Africa is one of decay, confusion, conflict and cover-ups.

However, this perception is not only related to Mncube’s derided new GNU. There have been public concerns for a considerable number of years about the dysfunctionality and incompetence of all levels of government – national, provincial and local.

Media viewers, readers and listeners are confronted daily with countless reports of uncontrolled crime, alleged and actual corruption – even at the highest levels of government – chronic and widespread basic service delivery failures, malfunctioning hospitals and clinics and inadequate and underperforming educational facilities, institutions and personnel.

Our citizens regularly and all too often learn of government departments’ unnecessary and wasteful use of taxpayers’ funds and their inability to fulfil their specific mandates to serve our nation efficiently and effectively.

Inter alia, in the areas of social development and grants, human settlements, land reform and rural development and employment and labour, governmental performance has been dismal and has undermined the country’s ability to alleviate poverty, inequality and promote inclusivity.

Unspent provincial and municipal funding allocations, lack of local infrastructure development and maintenance and daily resident protests illustrate the unacceptable performance levels of a majority of premiers, mayors and their provincial and local municipality councillors.

Foreign policy is making enemies of our former friends, even leading to economically damaging withdrawals of essential aid and other assistance programmes and potential sanctions.

Prosecutorial capacity and expertise are limited, allowing an unacceptable number of accused civil and criminal defendants to delay or escape judgments.

Underfunded and poorly managed ministries such as sport, arts and culture, basic and higher education, agriculture and small business development deprive and limit our youth and emerging farmers, artists and entrepreneurs from realising their potential to excel in their fields and to contribute to a more accomplished, well-informed, sophisticated and advanced society.

The government-controlled, state-owned enterprises, with their constant bailouts, bleed the fiscus of funds that could better be used to uplift the standards of living of those that need it most, while at the same time providing oft-used looting and self-enrichment opportunities to government-appointed “cadres”.

Energy supply is erratic, and existing logistical infrastructure is not functioning at a level required to keep many key sectors of our economy alive and flourishing.

The government is heavily over-borrowed with no room to increase the national debt, but seems unable to design or implement any plans to lower that debt and its debilitating interest payments.

Budget debacle