By DC Coetsee
All citizens, apart from blinded and hardened ANC loyalists, agree that South Africa is a failed state and the ANC is a failed government.
Most observers also believe that no political party will achieve an absolute majority of votes in the 2024 election. That is why coalition politics is currently a realistic and urgent point of discussion.
This in itself is a new experience for South Africa, but is very common in other “democratic” countries. South Africa’s experience of the past three quarters of a century has been that an overwhelming parliamentary majority is unhealthy for a healthy government – even though the government was established by an overwhelming majority of voters in a “democratic way”.
The reality is that “truth” and “reality” (also in the political field) cannot be established irrefutably in a democratic way.
Multiparty charter the answer?
A large number of political parties have talked and struggled together in recent months to create a charter that establishes shared values and goals on the basis of which they will fight the ANC in the upcoming election and establish a successful government.
A core value was that every party must be committed to “democracy”. A conspicuous “absent” party was the ACDP (until very recently), because the party consistently professed the supremacy of the biblical God in all areas and also wanted to have it written into the constitution – thus was committed to “theocracy” (the recognition of the supremacy of the biblical God). Therefore, the ACDP was the only party that voted against the adoption of the secular Constitution of 1996.
The most important question for the biblical voter is: “Can I give my vote and support to any political structure that does not openly profess the supremacy of the biblical God?” After all, it is written in Romans 13:4: “… for the government is a servant of God, for your good” and Jesus clearly said: “But seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things will be added to you become” in Matthew 6:33.
The ACDP was the only political party that admitted this unequivocally – and yet it attracted less than 5% of the votes of “Christian” South Africa! The emblem of the US Constitution has as its caption “In God we trust“. Yet it is currently the cradle and the growing anti-Christian “weeks” attack on Christian Western civilization.
The British King’s title is “fidei defender” (defender of faith), but King Charles prefers to call himself “defender of faiths”.
For Bible-believing Christians, the “multi-party charter” therefore falls short, because it does not differ in principle from the “charters” of the ANC and other secular parties.
A new party?
Isn’t the time ripe for a new Bible-faithful party to be established? The existing outspoken Bible-faithful party (ACDP) and others who by implication and their history pursue Christian principles (like the FF+) carry the baggage of their history. Rev. Cassie Aucamp’s Afrikaner Unity Movement (AEB) and National Action (NA) also did not get off the ground, because they were identified with a specific cultural and religious group.
Any objective expert on history knows that the Christian Western culture has made the greatest contribution of all cultures to the welfare and progress of mankind – and is currently the disk of the “weeks”-counterculture. Certainly the values, principles, goals and practices of the Christian Western culture have been infected and watered down to a currently almost directionless chaos (as reflected in the Republican Party in the USA) – which is exploited by the counterculture. But, Christians must learn from history.
In Deuteronomy 17:14-20, the Lord provided and gave instructions for a God-worshiping kingship, a “theocracy” (inherently different from worldly kingships) through which his own otherness is recognized. A government that “serves God (is) for your good” is therefore the biblical God’s will. Every participant in the government must know: “I am ultimately responsible to the living God about whether and how I carry out his governing assignment – not simply to voters”.
Isn’t it time for such a party to come into being?
The history of South Africa over the past 25 years in particular offers convinced Christians an opportunity like never before to render a service to our country: the eventual establishment of a good government.
- DC Coetsee is a native of the Kalahari. He worked as a missionary for 40 years and is currently engaged in biblical counseling and training.
