Criticism is a Dirty Sport

I've been perusing Zapiro's cartoons. It felt dirty, like viewing a hideous, twisted soul. To get a better picture, imagine those dark horror movies, or even the all-action blockbusters, where the character development starts and you're given a clear indication of the bad guy. They have certain features that mark them out, a twitch, a limp, lip-licking, shifty eyes or an elitist pet that they stroke. At any rate, they're designed with a feature that makes you feel dirty being around them, as though their mind is so dark that you dare not soften in its presence lest you become corrupted.

I paged through Zapiro's latest cartoons, one at a time. Inevitably there are aspects that draw you in - you say to yourself: "Yes, he's so right about Zuma" or "Oh, I understand the shower head he's drawn permanently pertruding from his head". For a while you afford yourself a smile, but the further you go, the more you begin to realise ... this guy doesn't let up. His drawings of Zuma are hideous, everybody gets the sledgehammer, it feels like you're caught in a deathtrap and there's never a softening in his spirit.

I didn't write this peace to slate Zapiro, but rather to illustrate what it's like to be a permanent critic. For a long time the DA have worn the opposition party badge and the feeling has been growing stronger and stronger that they believe their only job is to oppose. Too often you listen to the DA in a debate, and while you agree with their criticisms, you stop at the end and try to recall what solutions they had suggested.

In truth, the ACDP can also be guilty of being constantly critical. It gets tiresome, and moreover, it becomes depressing. I've experienced those branch meetings where you talk about nothing but the evils that are overtaking us. You come out depressed and you find less energy to return.

But what then is the opposite of criticism? Approval? Sometimes. Sometimes you have to summon the extraordinary courage to admire what your enemies have achieved. There are things I admire about the ANC. I respect that they managed to get 66% of the vote - that they could pull together a huge majority spread across 9 different ethnicities. Think about the Rwandan conflicts and you'll understand that kind of significance.

There is another alternative ... to provide a viable alternative. In other words, for every "don't", provide a feasible "do". I've talked about "criticism" in a negative vein, but we also talk about "constructive criticism" in a positive way. The one diminishes and the other enhances, at least potentially, depending on how well you receive it.

My guess is that the ACDP has been better positioned than the DA to be a critic, because the ACDP's approach has been to measure the ANC up against the Bible. If the Bible says that theft is wrong, then the DA can criticise for the sake of criticism. But by having a reference to work against, the ACDP can say theft is wrong, but also has the manual that provides the solution. The Bible has plenty to say about what good morals look like and what kind of life the righteous lead. Do the DA have a manual they work against?

Either way, we have to train ourselves to be solution-minded. People who solve problems become likeable. They also become good candidates to win elections. The ANC won in 1994 because they were the solution to apartheid (at least in the voters' minds), and the ACDP must gear itself to win elections by being the solution to the ANC.

Wise As Serpents, Tame As Doves

A great man once said: "Be wise as serpents and tame as doves." When you put it into practice, you understand how remarkably perceptive it is.

To be honest, the ACDP is a meeting point of some potentially divergent views. Some of the views could be regarded as conflicting, but in truth, when you bring them together, they form a more complete picture of the kind of government I believe God expects. Let me explain.

Some ACDP members join the party because of its hardline values. End abortion, bring in the death penalty, punish criminals. Others join the party because they believe it cares for the community, that it will all alleviate poverty and help the needy. A study of politics usually finds these two fields of thought on opposite sides of the fence. Not so with the church, and not so with the ACDP.

The same Bible that tells us to kick divisive people out of the church, tells us that true religion is feeding the widows and orphans. The same Bible that tells of Annanias and Saphira being struck dead instantly for lying (in the New Testament don't forget) also reminds us that Jesus saved the adulteress who knew her actions would require her life.

The truth is both simple and complex. There is a time to be moved by anger over the sin of your country, and there is a time to be moved with compassion as you see the suffering. And very often the two work hand in hand, where the very suffering that moves you is caused by the corruption that angers you. The obvious complexity is to know the time for compassion and the time for wrath, and so often parties like the ANC get both wrong.

The end result of the ACDP's melting pot is that we cater remarkably well for both sides of the equation. We are very strong in the area of tough action and we're very strong in the area of compassionate care. Of course our moral stance has never been in doubt, but a brief visit to the ACDP's website will reveal how intensely the party has campaigned to defend the weak, coupled with its continuous emphasis on community projects. It's a rare combination, but then the ACDP is a special party.

The Only Multi-Racial Party?

Every political party in South Africa sets out with the objective of being multi-racial - of having a healthy blend of black, white, coloured and Indian members. It's an enigma that's hard to chase down, because you have to pull different worldviews together and have everybody focusing in on the same objectives.

Let's for a moment look at the different political parties and be frank about their ethnic make-up. The ANC has always had strongly black roots, including a strong Xhosa influence, but pulling in considerable sections of Indian and coloured support too. The IFP has undoubtedly always been primarily a Zulu party. The UDM gets most of its support from blacks in Kwazulu-Natal and the Eastern Cape. The Minority Front represents the Indian vote, and the Freedom Front has a conservative white representation. The PAC and SACP have nearly always been primarily black parties. The ID are perhaps more difficult to class. The DA are still primarily a white party, with decent support from Indians and coloureds and some disenchanted blacks.

That brings us to the ACDP. The ACDP was founded from a black president's vision, has always had good white involvement, and has been effective in both the Indian areas of KZN and the coloured areas of the western provinces. The current NEC (National Executive Committee) is a full mix of the four of the primary ethnicities. Black support has always been a strong part of the party and Limpopo is a huge growth area among the blacks.

This is remarkable - can any other party in South Africa claim the representivity that the ACDP enjoy? How can it be possible? Simply, it's the Christian message that pulls everyone together. Christianity has been a stunningly successful unifier across the globe with millions of converts across China, Brazil, India, Europe, Africa, North America, etc. The ACDP has a rigorous set of values that don't shift with the winds and the party has always stressed its values over its personalities, which is why its members have less trouble looking beyond skin colour and looking to the issues themselves.

The implications are huge... the ACDP's ethnic balance simply makes the party better placed than the DA to replace the ANC. The DA will either need to shake off its "white party" image, or pull the majority black population to the point where they are disenchanted with the blacks' ability to run a government. On the contrary, the ACDP already have the ethnic balance that the DA crave, and with their emphasis on federalism over centralism are better able to adapt to the cultures of specific areas.

The Social Gospel

The ACDP has always been known as a morally grounded party, standing strongly and even fiercely on a set of moral principles. While I support the moral stance entirely, we're all aware that preaching a few principles is not necessarily enough to convince voters that a party is ready to govern.

The emergence of the community and social upliftment agenda in the ACDP has thus been incredibly refreshing. I personally have been challenged by this issue over the last few months, and it appears I'm not the only one. The Biblical passage of Isaiah 58 talks about "true religion" being to feed the orphans and widows and set free the (spiritual) captives. Jesus Himself refers to helping the poor and when the apostle Paul left Jerusalem, it was recorded that they had one common urge: to remember the poor.

Of course, it's tricky to "help the poor" when you don't have a budget to work with, and in some senses the voting public will never know what the ACDP is capable of until they are in power. Here it is refreshing that the position of Deputy Mayor in Cape Town was nailed down, so that the party will have a chance to show its motives in serving the community.

Despite the restrictions, however, it emerged that the different ACDP provinces have been heavily involved in community activity. An annual competition is managed to see which of the provinces achieves top score from several points categories, including members signed up, by-elections contested (60% overall, second only to the ANC among the parties), biggest percentage vote achieved in a by-election and number of community projects involved in. My province, KZN were leading right up to the last month, when Western Cape dug into their reserves and pipped us, with Limpopo casting a shadow down in third place. KZN as the leader has its hand in 27 community projects.

There have been several ways to get involved in the community. Firstly, enter into cooperation with current church projects like orphanages and soup kitchens. This is a natural relationship, because much governmental community development is done with NGO projects. ACDP can bring in organisational experience and oversight that perhaps some volunteers lack. Secondly, some ACDP branches provide a process help service, so that someone who is having difficulty with a national department can receive help in processing paperwork and finding the right channels. Finally, the good old community clean-ups - don your ACDP tshirt and go out as a group and pick up litter on the highways. It costs nothing and gets visible publicity. Funnily enough, the ANC copies us as soon as they see us do it! Sure, it's marketing, but which kind of marketing do you prefer: a big money bilboard or some elbow grease?

ACDP National Convention: A Ground-swell

I've just returned from Henley-on-Klip. Not from Oprah Winfrey's new school, although I did see it (looks like a modern office block). Actually, the 12-hour return trip was for ACDP's NAGC, or annual national convention.

I came away very encouraged - there was a lot of good news, some of which I'll be sharing over the next few days. More than that, I was just happy to listen and learn and to put my ear to the ground and hear what people are saying, thinking and feeling.

For me, the word that best describes the event is "ground-swell". In any conference like this, especially when votes are taken on potentially controversial issues like labour law, there is always chance for a bit of contention or bad feeling, especially when the attendants hail from so many different ethnic and economic backgrounds. In this light, I was stunned at the togetherness and unity in the party, with a sense of purpose in chasing one vision.

There was one amazing moment during one of Rev Meshoe's speeches, where he was discussing the fraud investigation of the Scorpions unit and how the announcement of allegations came a year after initial reports, timed perfectly as an attempted cover up of the investigations of Selebi. Rev Meshoe said boldly, "Enough is enough", and there was a massive roar from the crowd - a stadium type roar.

Truth is, there are many more than just ACDP supporters saying "Enough is enough". There is in fact a ground-swell of South Africans who are upset with the present system, but most feel that they are somehow powerless to react. In contrast, at this convention we were being presented with an alternative: a party that preserved traditional morals, that stood under the authority of the Bible rather than being a law to itself, and that had every intention of restoring good in this country.

I can still hear that roar...

First-time Welcome

Welcome to the brand new blog: The ACDP Insider.

Political parties are usually something of a black box, spitting out all kinds messages for the media, but leaving the general public wondering just what goes on behind the scenes.

This blog is about reversing that trend a little. No, it's not an official mouthpiece and there's no official communication here that you can splash on the front of newspapers, and of course I won't spill the beans on internal disciplinary matters. But I will tell you what it's like being on the inside of a political party, how the engine room works, what drives people.

Now the ACDP is not yet South Africa's biggest party, and by no means its smallest either, but it's an incredibly interesting party too. Some of the ACDP's policies definitely kick out against the trend and cause you to stop and think twice, maybe thrice. If you're ready to think outside the box, ready to question what you've always been told on the telly, I just think you might enjoy heading this way for a few nuggets too.