Name of Party:
GOOD
Year Launched:
2018
Party Leader:
Patricia de Lille
What it believes:
The GOOD party has branded itself as a party that believes in fighting corruption, creating a good life for South Africans and for the country. Its values include truth, trust equality, solidarity and service. It believes in fighting corruption and stamping down racism. The party has also pushed for ideas focused on spatial, social, economic and environmental justice for a country that is rapidly urbanizing. The party believes social justice also aims to focus on improving development in urban areas to accommodate for a growing urban population.
Profile of leader:
Patricia de Lille has been at the helm of GOOD since December, but her political career spans decades. De Lille launched the party a few months after her departure from the DA where she served as the mayor of Cape Town. Her departure was months in the making following legal spats with her party leaders over corruption allegations.
De Lille was politically active when she worked as a laboratory technician and was involved in union movement within the South African Chemical Workers Union and later was elected vice-president of labour federation Nactu in the 1980s. She was elected into the national executive committee of the Pan Africanist Movement in 1989. De Lille was elected as member Parliament for the Pan Africanist Congress (PAC) in 1994. She went on to serve as the chairperson of Parliament’s transport committee, a position she held from 1994 until 1999. She also served in various Parliamentary committees.
De Lille is also associated with her involvement in a controversial arm deal where she became a whistle-blower. In 2003 she crossed the floor in Parliament and formed her own political party, Independent Democrats (ID).
In 2010, she along with the leadership of her party decided that the ID would merge with the DA.
The merger could have been seen as a win for de Lille as it enabled her to hold powerful positions in government. She served as the Western Cape MEC for social development. She served as Mayor of Cape Town from June 2011 and again from 2016 until her resignation from the DA in October 2018.
Her resignation prompted a number of disgruntled DA members to also resign from the party and in December 2018 the Good party was launched.
History in nutshell:
GOOD was launched in December 2018 and De Lille was appointed as its leader. The party’s formation followed De Lille’s resignation from the DA and the resignations of other DA members.
GOOD’s position on:
LAND:
The GOOD party does not believe in the position of amending the Constitution for expropriating land without compensation. The party believes that there is no need to amend the Constitution in order to fast track access to land. It believes the government’s current policy as envisaged by section 25 of the Constitution already allows for expropriation without compensation and as a result, there is no need to amend the constitution. The party believes there is vast land is owned by the state and state-owned companies that can be used for land redistribution. The party says if elected, it will implement a land audit in an effort to identify unused private and public land. It says it will provide title deeds to residents in informal settlements which will provide them with a form of security for their homes. It also has ambitious plans to settle outstanding land restitution cases within five years of taking office, through the use of land owned by the government and state-owned enterprises.
CORRUPTION:
The party believes corrupt politicians should be prosecuted and not promoted to Parliament. It says it will cut government spending operating costs and stop corruption which it believes will, in turn, allow for increased social spending on grants and infrastructure investment. It has used its party leader as an example, saying she had a clean governance record of any mayor in the country and had exposed the arms deal which implicated former president Jacob Zuma.
STATE OF LOCAL GOVERNMENT:
The GOOD party believes it’s time to change how the government approaches urban development as more South African choose to migrate to urban areas seeking a better life. It says fixing towns and cities is crucial to creating a pathway to a good life South Africans. It will do this by reducing government’s operating costs and wasteful expenditure which are observed in the duplication of functions between national, provincial and local government. Good believes a government should stop corruption, build infrastructure, provide policy certainty to investors and businesses. It should also support workers, businesses and towns and cities to ensure growth.
GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE:
The GOOD party believes violent homes result in a violent society. The party will ensure equitable treatment of all people in the country. It says South Africans must stop being silently complacent about violence. As a solution, it says it will educate young boys and men stop the violence against women. It says for young women and girls education is key to escaping generational poverty. It says it will provide equitable access to education for disadvantaged girls and women and through the use of social grants.
ENVIRONMENT:
The GOOD party says it will tackle climate change head-on, uphold environmental rights, help cities implement emissions and waste reduction plans. It says it will increase renewable energy into the electricity grid with the use of solar energy which offers lower emissions. The party says it will allow large metros to produce and generate their own energy. It promises to implement and meet international commitments to reduce emissions and that local governments lead the way in reducing environmental impacts; by offering better public transport. The party also promises to focus on protecting catchment, rivers and wetlands. It will also set its focus on water security by removing thirst invasive alien vegetation which will increase water yields and create jobs and protect the environment.
STATE OF THE SOEs:
GOOD says it will be able to make state-owned enterprises financially independent. It says it would spilt Eskom into different divisions so it can compete to provide the country with power at competitive pricing. It also plans to focus on Eskom providing more renewable energy.
FOURTH INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION:
The GOOD party believes SA’s approach to technology needs a revamp. The party says the country must not be left behind in the technology revolution. A solution will be the implementation of rolling out fibre, reducing the cost of data through prioritizing underprivileged schools and communities, the party said. Increased e-learning, equitable access to the internet and reduced data costs must be enabled to increase access to the digital world.
CRIME:
GOOD says crime in South Africa is at unacceptable levels and needs to be tackled with proven solutions. It says it will use the method used by crime riddled cities in Colombia which have proven positive for the country and saw reductions in murder rates. The Colombian method approaches crime and violence as a public health problem, a disease. With this method, it changes how police and the government approach crime solutions. This approach uses a variety of public services, not just law enforcement to tackle the problem. This requires a clear understanding of why murders and violence take place and the root causes.
SMALL BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT:
The party believes the government needs to have less red tape and more red carpet approach to small businesses. GOOD says towns and cities need to have dedicated growth and investment strategies that focus and unlock the potential of the skills, infrastructure and resources of each area.
HOUSING:
The party believes the national government’s delivery of housing has declined by more than 60% in the last 10 years. It says it will accelerate formal housing supply by moving the functions of providing housing to local government.
It says it will develop inclusive higher density housing merge with the urban environment and ensure people are close to jobs. Good says it will provide title deeds to residents in informal settlements so they can have security and invest in their own homes. Good says it will ensure towns and cities provide services to informal settlements.
* Compiled by Zintle Mahlati
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