Muddy waters- the Political Battles Between Keeping Power and Hydrating Citizens
Mackenzie Douglas 

More than four million people who reside in Cape Town’s South Africa, have been living in a state of emergency. The aired Southern hemisphere is experiencing the worst days of a three-year long drought. For millions of people this means that they are now under strict quotas to use less than 13.5 gallons of water per day. If the crisis is not solved in the coming weeks South Africa’s most notorious and prosperous city will run out of water. 

            The national government is in the literal hot seat as the drought is continuing to get worse. Professor Graham Jewitt, who is the Umgeni Water Chair of Water Resources Management and director of the Centre for Water Resources Research speaks out against many who say the water crises is all to blame on climate change. “It has become just another scapegoat for the blame game of the politicians”. The ruling African National Congress (ANC) represents the majority party rule in eight of the nine provincials that comprise South Africa. Since the end of the apartheid in 1994, the ANC has yet to claim victory in the Western Cape. This Provincial is run by the Liberal Democratic Alliance. Many are speaking out against the minority ruling party in this area, because evidence of the drought becoming a reality was pushed to the back burner in favor of keeping the local wine economy running and prosperous. Over one third of the city’s water allocation was given to the agricultural districts. Now the citizens are suffering life altering consequences.  

            Internationally things are not looking good for the nation of South Africa. Earlier in the year the Israeli government reached out in hopes of helping them create desalination plants. There was so much back lash and disapproval for their help that the event was later canceled. What does this mean for the Liberal Democratic Alliance in future elections? The ANC has been power hungry to grab the seats held in the Western Cape Provincial for the past 25 years. If this water crisis is devastating enough, the ANC could have the advantage in the next election to secure 113 more seats in the government. If that were to happen the ANC would then have an almost absolute monopoly over the nations representation seats.

            Rahm’s Role of Partisan Stereotypes in Information Processing about Political Candidates is a good representation of what Cape Town’s future could look like. He predicts that voters use short cuts and strategy given to them by the parties or candidates outlined policies to vote. Although he is arguing that a voter will vote one way no matter what information is presented, this same theory could be used in the case of South Africa. The upcoming election is going to be determined on the grounds of who or which party can influence the voters more. The ANC will do everything in its power to prove to the people that Liberal Democratic Alliance is weak and crumbling, in hopes to gain their votes. Even then, the ANC is experiencing its own national political crisis. The current party leader and head of the state Zuma is facing allegations of corruption. Possible successors of the president are tirelessly working to improve the situation in Cape Town, and the national standing of the ruling ANC party.    

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