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Dr Harlan Cloete
Dr Harlan Cloete is a research fellow in the Department of Public Administration and Management at the University of the Free State.

Opinion article by Dr Harlan Cloete, Department of Public Administration and Management, University of the Free State (UFS).


I know that there is great hype around the upcoming national and provincial elections on 29 May, some going as far as calling this our second 1994 – I get that. But I think that we might be making too much of this and forget that what counts is what takes place between elections. For some reason, we seem to think that voting is enough to bring about change, and we can then sit back as citizens and not wait for services to be delivered to us. Or we think that the coalition government will be the saviour. That we have left it to politicians to decide our fate and we simply capitulate to their whims is beyond me. Sometimes I even hear the argument from academics that ‘I do not vote because it will legitimise the current corrupt system’, or ‘I want nothing to do with politics’ – yet politics has everything to do with you, every day.

Performance of municipalities

South Africa is blessed with a three-tier democracy. Constitutional democracy spells out the Bill of Rights and the governance framework. Representative democracy allows the space to elect political leaders through the ballot, and finally participatory democracy calls for active participation between elections. Locally, this is expressed in the co-creation of an integrated development plan with communities and ward committees – real grassroots governance. However, this process has not been without fault, with many officials simply using this process as a tick-box exercise that makes a mockery of genuine participation that would bring dignity to contested spaces.  What is worse is the performance of our municipalities. Let us take the Free State province as an example. As reported by the Department of Cooperative Development, all 23 municipalities in the Free State are deemed dysfunctional. Consequently, it is no wonder that not a single municipality has managed to attain a clean audit from the Auditor General in the past decade. Ratings Afrika earlier reported that the financial situation of the Mangaung Municipality is so dire that it is struggling to pay its suppliers on time; the capital was also rated the worst metropolitan performer in the Good Governance Africa rating for 2023.This is an inditement on the entire local governance system.

Active citizenship

The National Development Plan identifies active citizenship as the key ingredient to ensure that this democracy works. Eve Ensler reminds us that an activist is someone who cannot but help fight for something. That person is usually not motivated by a need for power, money, or fame but is in fact driven slightly mad by some injustice, some cruelty, some unfairness, so much so that he or she is compelled by some internal moral engine to act or make it better.  Through my Great Governance ZA podcast, I found that there is no shortage of active citizens in our country. Over the past three years, I have conversed with more than 100 passionate people. In Bloemfontein, I crossed paths with Boeta Swart – his organisation Anchor of Hope gets the job done; in the Winnie Madikizela municipality, ethical leader Luvuyo Mahlaka runs a tight ship; and youth development champion and author, Frank Julie, generously shares his gifts and talents throughout the land.  There are so many untold stories.

Activists – need I remind you – are not just active during elections but work passionately in concert with others to make the world a better place. The 2024 elections are important, yes, but the watershed election will be the 2026 local government elections when we will elect new ward councillors and ward committees. And coalitions are here to stay, it is a natural consequence of the electoral system, says Prof Jaap de Visser of the Dullah Omar Institute. The Sustainable Development Plan – specifically goal 16 – speak to peace and justice and strong institutions through partnerships (goal 17). Our future is partnerships – coalitions of people with the right heads, hearts, and eager hands. And yes, sometimes we will be tested and called to work with people that we do not like, agree with, or trust as Adam Kahane puts it. But that should not deter us. Democracy is difficult work, a contact sport.

Make an even greater impact

Voting or participation in elections is a first step, but I am afraid this is not enough. As an academic community specifically, we must use our privileged position in society to make an even greater impact, as advocated by the late Prof Bongani Mayosi, who argues that what matters most is service to society.

The National Development Plan concludes that a comprehensive, coordinated, multi-sectoral approach to development is required. Such an approach must include partnerships between civil society, the private sector, government, and academia. To make this coalition work will require buckets of good(will) and activism. We are on the brink of the new. God helps us as we do and dare.

*Dr Harlan Cloete is a pracademic and research fellow in the Centre for Gender and Africa Studies at the University of the Free State. He is the founder of the Great Governance ZA podcast and founder member of community radio KC107.7 in Paarl in 1996.

More information

• For expert commentary on the 2024 national and provincial elections, please contact the following UFS experts:


Click to view documentClick here for more institutional experts covering various topics.

News Archive

Access to the Bloemfontein Campus
2015-04-02

Access Control Made Easy

The first phase of access control at the University of the Free State (UFS) was implemented in August 2014. The aim of this initiative is to tighten security measures on the Bloemfontein Campus.
 
Since November 2014, access control has been implemented at all five gates on the Bloemfontein Campus. These are:

  • The Main gate in Nelson Mandela Drive (Gate 1)
  • The gate in DF Malherbe Drive (Gate 5)
  • The gate in Wynand Mouton Drive (Gate 3) 
  • The gate in Furstenburg Street (Gate 4)
  • The gate in Badenhorst Street (Gate 2)

Here is some useful information about the access control system:

1. Remember your access card when you enter the campus

Dual-function cards (with distance reader compatibility) will make your movement through the gates more convenient. The university’s access system works automatically with remote or swipe action. Please make sure that you drive close to the reader or, better still, get the dual-frequency card to manage the distance between your vehicle and the remote card reader.

As of 23 March 2015, the extra security staff, who have been assisting at the gates since the implementation of access control on the Bloemfontein Campus, are no longer manning the card readers at the gates. Therefore, persons without cards will be able to enter the campus only at the one gate in DF Malherbe Drive where the Visitors Centre is situated. They will be referred to the Visitors Centre, where a day visitor’s card will be issued to them. You will need to produce a formal identification document (e.g. ID book, driver's licence).

Security will continue their normal duties at the guardhouses for the various gates on the campus.

2. Where do I get an access card?

You can apply at the university’s Visitors Centre front desk by producing your positive identification (ID book/passport/driver’s licence) and proof of payment for your access card.

You will then be directed to the Thakaneng Bridge where you will be able to collect your access card.

  • Go to the Cashier on the Thakaneng Bridge and pay your R65 for the dual-frequency card
  • Take your receipt, together with your existing card (if you have one), to the Card Division on the Thakaneng Bridge (next to Mellins Optometrists)
  • A new photo will be taken of you at the Card Office for your new card. Your new card will then be issued immediately.

Currently, there is a sufficient stock of the dual-frequency cards available at the Card Division on the Thakaneng Bridge.
 
Alternatively, you can apply online for your access card: http://apps.ufs.ac.za/cardapplication/application.aspx

Make sure you have the following documents ready to attach when completing the online form:

  • Copy of positive identification: ID/Driver's Licence/Passport
  • Signed declaration (http://supportservices.ufs.ac.za/dl/Userfiles/Documents/00007/4668_eng.pdf) by your service provider/employer (if you are a service provider) or a letter of confirmation from your spouse/partner/relative/coach/relevant UFS staff member or student in cases where you have to visit, pick-up or drop off your spouse/partner/relative frequently on the UFS Bloemfontein Campus.

Cost: R65 for a long-term card and free of charge for short-term visits and conference delegates. Pay at the Cashier on the Thakaneng Bridge or at Absa Bank, Account Number: 1 570 8500 71, Ref: 1 413 07670 0198.

3. Cutoff Date: 7 April 2015

After 7 April 2015, no pedestrian or motorist will be able to enter the campus without a valid access card. Persons without access cards will have to enter the campus at the gate in DF Malherbe Drive where the Visitors Centre is situated. You will then be referred to the Visitors Centre where you will have to apply for a day visitor’s card. It is important to note that no one will be able to enter the campus at the Visitors Centre without a formal identification document (e.g. ID book, driver's licence).

4. Dual-frequency card simplifies access to the campus

It is important to have your card ready on entering the campus.

This card will simplify access to the campus considerably, as the card reader will read the card when it is held in a vertical position at the driver’s side window in the direction of the distance reader. Please do not place the card on the dashboard. There is an antenna wire in the card. If the card is placed on the dashboard, you are not exposing the card surface to the reader, and that might influence the antenna’s response to the reader.

Remember, the distance between the reader and the boom is only a few metres.  If you approach the reader at a ’high’ speed, you are not allowing the system to identify your card, match it to the entry in the database, check if you are ‘legal’, and then send a signal to open the boom. 

All five gates are equipped with distance readers. Within the next three weeks, two extra distance readers will also be installed at the Main Gate in Nelson Mandela Drive.
 
Please note that the dual-frequency card is needed only when you enter the campus with a vehicle and you want to activate the distance reader. All the older cards will continue to work at the tag readers. 

5. Use alternative gates

At times, some of the gates carry more traffic than others, especially with the peak morning and afternoon traffic. Gates with less traffic include:

  • The gate in Badenhorst Street
  • The gate in DF Malherbe Drive
  • The gate in Nelson Mandela Drive

You are welcome to make use of one of these alternative gates.

6. Pedestrians

No pedestrian will be able to enter the Bloemfontein Campus without a valid access card. If you have left your card at home or have lost it, you should enter the campus at the gate in DF Malherbe Drive where the Visitors Centre is situated. You will be referred to the Visitors Centre where you can apply for a day visitor’s card. You will still need to produce a formal identification document (e.g. ID book, driver's licence).

7. More information

Email: visitorscentre@ufs.ac.za
Visitors Centre front desk: Tel: +27 51 401 7766 (Mondays-Fridays 07:45-16:30)
Card Division: Tel: +27 51 401 2799 (Mondays-Fridays 07:45-16:30)
Protection Services duty room: +27 51 401 2634 (24 hours)

 

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