Comrades
National Elections reflect the perceptions people hold and form decisions
when the cast their votes, according to the theory of issue voting, voters
compare the candidates' respective principles against their own in order to
decide for whom to vote. A voter does not need to have an in-depth
understanding of every issue and knowledge of how a candidate stands on
every issue, but rather a sense of which candidate they agree with the most.
Voters use many different tactics to rationalize their view on a particular
issue. Some people look at what has happened in the past and predict how
they think a particular issue will affect them in the future. A study found
that voters switch between issue voting and party voting depending on how
much information is available to them about a given candidate. A voter's
understanding of parties' principles is strengthened and developed over time
as a person gains experience with more political events. First, issues are
not always dichotomous; there are often many stances one could take. Voters
often must settle for the candidate whose stances are closest to their own,
example majority of people seek employment, quality free education, ANC in
the past 20 years failed to deliver on these basic service and needs but
voters casted their votes in favour of ANC but not PAC! Why because some
voters opinion are either sentimental and/or based on opinion formulated on
the basis of skewed information (we know ANC is not the only liberation
movement- so why should/ do people consider ANC as the only liberation
movement) or failure of PAC to expose itself to the public during 365 day
multiplied by 5 years deprived voters information about PAC as an
alternative Party. In order for an issue to create the foundation for party
choice, a voter must first be concerned about a particular issue and have
some knowledge about that issue which is linked to a party or particular
candidate of the Party. The media is and will always be biased, what plans
did the party formulate to in advance to promote and popularise its
positions and condemn acts deemed not to be in the public's interests!
In order for a person to be an issue voter, they must be able to recognize
that there is more than one opinion about a particular issue, have formed a
solid opinion about it and be able to relate that to a specific political
party. According to Campbell, only 40 to 60 percent of the informed
population even perceives party differences, and can thus partake in party
voting. This would suggest that it is common for individuals to develop
opinions of issues without the aid of a political party. Thus while some
voters cast their votes based on the understanding of a party's principles,
most tends to cast their votes based on perceptions and opinions based
either on issues or that which had the most impacted for a voter to create a
perception or opinion.
Mao argued that every difference in men's concepts should be regarded as
reflecting an objective contradiction. Objective contradictions are
reflected in subjective thinking, and this process constitutes the
contradictory movement of concepts, pushes forward the development of
thought, and ceaselessly solves problems in man's thinking. Opposition and
struggle between ideas of different kinds constantly occur within the Party;
this is a reflection within the Party of contradictions between classes and
between the new and the old in society. If there were no contradictions in
the Party and no ideological struggles to resolve them, the Party's life
would come to an end.
We are at risk of being reduced to political commentators as the PAC is
thrown into obscurity, as it no longer exist in the consciousness of the
masses, as the PAC disintegrates daily! We are caught up in a cobweb of
conflicting practices, principles against patronage; objective reality and
sentimentalism. Drawing from past experiences, unhappy PAC members always
resorted to either not voting while others openly de-campaign PAC during
national elections as far back as 1994, 1999, 2004; but since 2009 and 2014
the majority members and branches opted not vote and not to campaign for
PAC, amidst efforts made to encourage PAC members to vote and campaign for
PAC. Failure, to be cognisant of the fact that PAC is an organisation whose
membership and leaders are deeply hurt, PAC is a wounded party which
requires a self-healing process. PAC members are highly disgruntled and the
2014 National and Provincial Elections serves as nothing but a clear
indicator. Our party is in a highly abnormal situation organisationally. The
golden fibre that kept the party in tact has been eroded, to rebuild and
re-organise the PAC implies re-crafting that golden fibre and this requires
sober, objectiveness and principles approach to problem solving.
Lenin said: "The two basic (or two possible? or two historically
observable?) conceptions of development (evolution) are: development as
decrease and increase, as repetition, and development as a unity of
opposites (the division of a unity into mutually exclusive opposites and
their reciprocal relation)"
This dialectical world outlook teaches us primarily how to observe and
analyse the movement of opposites in different things and, on the basis of
such analysis, to indicate the methods for resolving contradictions. It is
therefore most important for us to understand the law of contradiction in
things in a concrete way. Repetition of inner party contradiction did not
necessarily result to development, growth and strengthening of the party but
qualitative degeneration and disintegration of the PAC. Hence the view that
the Party's weakness has been inability to address and handle party
contradictions, instead common leadership tendencies has been to exploit
internal party contradiction to consolidate and advance factional hegemony
while the other feuding faction will either counter-organise.
This should explain why PAC performed very badly during the 2014 May 7
National Elections, that is, leadership inability to resolve inner party
contradictions. This major weakness revolves around poor or bad conflict
management methods across all party structures Leaders and members, tend to
forget that conflict is a common phenomenon in organisations, and leaders
fail to adopt and apply a win-win method whose accumulative effect should
PAC emerging as a winner. Win-win method in conflict resolution involves an
attempt to work with the other members who hold divergent view(s) to find a
win-win solution to the problem in hand - the one that most satisfies the
concerns of both parties-members in the best interests of the PAC. The
win-win approach sees conflict resolution as an opportunity to come to a
mutually beneficial result for the PAC. It includes identifying the
underlying concerns of those disgruntled members (leaders) and finding an
alternative which meets each and all members' concerns. Advantages of
collaborating, Leads to solving the actual problem; Leads to a win-win
outcome; Reinforces mutual trust and respect; Builds a foundation for
effective collaboration in the future; Shared responsibility of the outcome.
Collaborating requires a commitment from all parties to look for a mutually
acceptable solution. Compromising looks for an expedient and mutually
acceptable solution which partially satisfies both parties. But prior May
2014 elections, those leading the PAC dismally failed to find a convergence
of ideas with the feuding groupings and also move further to mobilise PAC
members not forming part of these feuding factions.
The universality or absoluteness of contradiction has a twofold meaning. One
is that contradiction exists in the process of development of all things,
and the other is that in the process of development of each thing a movement
of opposites exists from beginning to end. Either the PAC's life is nearing
an end or PAC is being reborn from the prevalent inner party contradictions.
However the class character of those leading the PAC tells a story worth to
be observed as the PAC ideo-political orientation is being redefined, for
the 37,784 (0.21%) may be representative of PAC's political redefined, an
occurrence common in national liberation parties in Africa which tends to
pursues a non-socialist path (Or anti-socialist trajectory) post
"independence"! Following this probable conclusions, one questions, is it an
omission that 34 African mineworkers were massacred in 2012 but PAC till to
date has been quiet? Is it an omission once more that the same Platinum
African mineworkers had been on an industrial strike for more than 112 days
since late January/ early February 2014 but PAC till to date continues to be
silent? Is it an omission once more that in nearly 300 abducted Nigerian
Girls had been abducted but PAC remains and continues to be silent? The list
is endless of occurrences in the country, in Africa and Globally but PAC
remains silent!
Regards
Nkrumah
From: [email protected] [mailto:[email protected]]
Sent: 19 May 2014 09:37 AM
To: [email protected]
Subject: Re: [PAYCO] Members
Cde Jabu Makhanya
I have to painstakingly cohere that there is nothing that will ever justify
not voting PAC by he who declares himself a member of the party. We cannot
"cut off our nose to spite our face" so to speak. PAC has always beckoned us
to uphold the principle in the wake of all confusion and rumblings. I have
been following discussions on social networks, most of the time silently,
and my level of respect has risen for comrades who despite their candid
misgivings about the PAC leadership did a thing most noble, encouraged for a
PAC vote and actually voted the PAC.
I implore all of us, as Comrade Sibeko raises an issue of serious
contention, that we should never encourage a behavior and notion where
"members cannot be blamed for stabbing the PAC." What.....are you kidding
me!? Thanks to Cde Linda Ndebele for putting things into
perspective....hard facts but not principle abandoning.
On Saturday, May 17, 2014 11:11 AM, "'[email protected]' via Pan
Africanist Youth Congress" <[email protected]> wrote:
In any political formation, members come and go and it is up to a given
leadership to create an environment which will bolster and sustain
membership growth. After the death of Uncle Zeph Mothopeng, the PAC
completely lost poltical direction up to-date and this has disillusioned
general membership of the PAC. Current PAC leaders are no longer thinking
and preaching the party's philosophy. Some will recall Patricia de Lille and
the current PAC leader, Mike Muendane ignorantly blaming Zanu-Pf on land
reform in Zimbwabwe, this has angered many PAC members, current PAC
leaders are not responding to daily issues negatively affecting the masses.
For instance how much does it cost the PAC to issue a supporting statement
on Marikana AMCU strike.The PAC's failure is not about money. And as a
result of all these, you could not have expected every member to vote for
the PAC. People have a right to vote for what satisfy themselves and
members cannot be blammed for stabbing the PAC.
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