Erosion of public trust in leaders set to undermine 2009 elections in South Africa

Without clear commitments by the new ANC leadership towards ethical conduct in public office, levels of trust in politicians are likely to decrease, further alienating voters.

Modern democracies gain much of their legitimacy by holding political leaders and public officials accountable. When corruption or conflicts of interest arise, public officials are discredited and levels of trust in democratic institutions decline. Ongoing scandals and allegations in the media appear to have taken their toll. In 2006 the national public opinion survey Afrobarometer found that 68% of respondents believe that some, or all, of officials in the Office of the Presidency are corrupt, while 70% thought that to be the case with the members of National Parliament. Unelected government officials did not fair better - 82% of respondents thought them likely to be corrupt. When asked how well or badly government is handling the fight against corruption in government, the majority (52%) felt that it was doing badly, 45% said well, while the rest were unsure.