The urgent need for vigilance ahead of local government elections

Share current article via Email Share current article via Facebook Share current article via Twitter Share current article via LinkedIn Looking at developments in South Africa's political arena over the past few months is not merely alarming; it is a reminder that the more things change, the more they stay the same. Our young democracy carries a history that is unforgettable and haunting. Unforgettable because we cannot afford to repeat the inhumanity of the colonial and apartheid order, and thus our constitutional ethos was forged precisely to prevent that repetition. Haunting because, in the words of former minister Naledi Pandor, 'we have become complacent with our democracy', and I would go further to say we have not been sufficiently watchful. If we had, recent events would have made clear we face an enemy of progress that is restless, whose methods of undermining democracy lack originality, and whose tactics we have seen before. We forget too easily that on the eve of democracy the apartheid state deliberately sought to pit black South Africans against one another. Through covert funding, training and collusion, security force networks helped fuel violence in KwaZulu-Natal and on the Reef. The Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) later found that while little evidence existed of a single, centrally directed and formally constituted 'third force', a network of security and former security force operatives, frequently acting in conjunction with right-wing forces, fomented, facilitated and engaged in violence that resulted in gross human rights violations. The TRC did not fully trace every strand of these networks or achieve complete accountability. That unfinished business is precisely what continues to haunt our democracy. The methods of division, the planting of fear, and the mobilisation of communities against one another on the basis of partial truths or outright falsehoods, these have not disappeared. They have simply adapted. Over successive election cycles we have witnessed a familiar pattern of mobilisation driven by mob psychology, organised around half-truths and unverified claims that risks sabotaging democratic participation. Most recently, Jacinta Ngobese-Zuma and the March and March movement have exemplified this approach. They have harnessed genuine social frustrations of poor governance, scarcity of opportunities and deep anxiety about the future and channelled them into demonstrations that lack sophisticated systems of engagement. Real grievances about service delivery and economic exclusion deserve serious attention to detail that helps us arrive at the truth. It does not follow, however, that the inhumane deportation of African migrants will magically make South Africa 'work for South Africans only'. A concrete illustration of how these dynamics play out in the public sphere is the recent Broadcasting Complaints Commission of South Africa (BCCSA) ruling against SAFM. In a June 2026 interview on The National Pulse, Ngobese-Zuma made serious factual allegations about foreign nationals. She claimed without evidence that they were responsible for 60% of serious crime in Gauteng, that foreign-funded organisations were buying weapons, that bombs and explosives were entering the country, that foreign military bases operated here, and that foreign nationals avoided prosecution by bribing police officials. The BCCSA found these claims were not clearly presented as opinion, were not based on facts that were truly stated or fairly indicated, and were not adequately challenged or verified by the broadcaster. SAFM has apologised and must broadcast a summary of the findings. The commissioner underscored the particular danger of disinformation in the approach to elections, and noted such unchallenged claims risked exposing immigrants to contempt, discrimination and displacement. This was not merely a failure of one interview; it was a failure of the democratic duty to interrogate the factual foundation of what is presented to the public. Such opportunistic tactics thrive because democratic institutions and public discourse have been mishandled, allowing unverified narratives to fill the vacuum left by eroded trust. A government of the people, by the people and for the people requires citizens who can deliberate together on the basis of shared facts. Without a common commitment to evidence, verification, and honest contestation of ideas, collective decision-making collapses into competing tribes armed with their preferred stories. Participation becomes performance, and mobilisation becomes manipulation. This reveals the work of democracy must be continuous; it does not stop when we are comfortable or even because we are uncomfortable. It is built through difficult compromise, painful truth-telling, and the determination to choose a shared future over endless division. The unresolved networks and methods of the past still echo whenever lies travel faster than facts and when platforms amplify rather than interrogate. This sabotage feeds on our divisions. But whatever separates our interests, one fact must hold: South Africa is a nation built on the pursuit of truth and reconciliation, because without that pursuit, there is no shared society in which all of us can thrive. Thus, we can no longer afford to be distracted as we approach the 2026 local government elections. We must be able to deliberate on a shared understanding of our grievances to forge informed votes for a local government that is committed to its developmental mandate. Honest and credible community networks should be able to bring us to a reflection about a municipality crippled by ageing, inadequate infrastructure and captured by patronage networks that have taken advantage of the fact that we are not watchful over resources that are meant to build our shared vision. These are the promises of a local government that is committed to our constitutional democracy. Nothing but the truth can uphold our democracy. The choice before us is whether we will confront the unfinished business of division and disinformation or allow the same old force that is restless, adaptive, and still haunting us to succeed under new banners. Mahlangu is a researcher at the City of Tshwane. She writes in her personal capacity. Sowetan