Only leadership will rebuild SA's municipalities: OUTA's Wayne Duvenage

OUTA CEO Wayne Duvenage returns to a theme he addressed on stage at BNC#9: South Africa's crisis is not a shortage of capable people, but a shortage of ethical, courageous leadership. In this newsletter, he argues that municipalities collapse not because most public servants are corrupt, but because accountability erodes and leadership loses its moral compass. With local elections roughly ten weeks away, Duvenage urges voters to judge candidates on competence and integrity rather than party loyalty, and points to technology, a free press and civil society pressure — not politicians alone — as the forces that will determine whether Johannesburg and other struggling municipalities can be rescued..By Wayne Duvenage*.Every election cycle, I hear the same weary refrain: Our municipalities and cities like Johannesburg are beyond saving. Increasingly, that pessimism extends to South Africa itself, as if corruption, state failure and institutional decline have reached a point of no return.I disagree and I do so, not because I underestimate the scale of the crisis. Corruption remains deeply entrenched, too many municipalities are financially distressed, basic services continue to fail millions of residents, and public trust in government has been eroded over decades of poor leadership.I disagree because I have spent more than two decades watching organisations transform when leadership changes. Whether in business, government or civil society, institutions seldom fail because the majority of people are incompetent or dishonest. They fail because leadership loses its moral compass or focus on who they are serving. They fail because accountability disappears, transparency weakens, organisational culture deteriorates and in the end, public trust evaporates.The reverse is equally true. Ethical, competent leadership can change an institution far more quickly than many people imagine.One of the greatest misconceptions about South Africa’s public sector is that everyone working within it must be corrupt because the institutions they serve are failing.That is simply not true.Across national, provincial and local government are thousands of capable, committed public servants who want to do the right thing. Many have become disillusioned, working in environments where political interference overrides professional judgement and excellence is neither recognised nor rewarded. With few employment alternatives, many simply keep their heads down rather than challenge the conduct of their bosses or the dysfunctional systems.Yet when principled leadership arrives, something remarkable often happens. People begin stepping forward. Standards improve. Professionalism returns. Employees who have quietly waited for permission to do the right thing finally receive it, while those protecting patronage networks find themselves increasingly isolated.Good leadership gives people permission to become the best version of themselves.The problem in most dysfunctional institutions is rarely the majority of employees. More often, it is a relatively small group occupying positions of influence who manipulate procurement, appointments and financial decision-making for private gain. The overwhelming majority simply want to work in organisations they can be proud of.The real disease afflicting South Africa is not corruption itself. Corruption is the symptom. The disease is weak accountability.Every corruption scandal begins long before money disappears. Somewhere along the way, warning signs were ignored, procurement rules were bypassed, uncomfortable questions went unasked or honest officials remained silent because speaking out carried greater personal risk than looking away.Successful organisations do not rely on perfect people. They rely on systems that make wrongdoing difficult and accountability unavoidable. They create environments where transparency is expected, professional judgement is protected and ethical conduct becomes the norm rather than the exception.Technology now gives us opportunities that previous generations could only imagine.Imagine every government tender, contract variation and public payment being published in real time, allowing citizens, journalists and civil society to scrutinise public spending before money leaves the public purse. Artificial intelligence can already identify unusual pricing, conflicts of interest, supplier collusion and procurement anomalies in minutes rather than months.Instead of exposing corruption after billions of rands have been lost, we could increasingly prevent it before it occurs.The technology exists. What is however missing, is the political will to seize it and work with civil society to tackle corruption head on. We must change that.Local elections provides an opportunity for change.As South Africa approaches another round of local government elections, voters should recognise that these elections are about far more than political parties. They are about leadership.Liberation politics is steadily giving way to the politics of performance. Increasingly, South Africans are asking not who liberated the country three decades ago, but who can rescue municipalities and the country from financial collapse, restore basic services and rebuild public confidence.The simple question that every voter should be asking is: Who is most likely to place residents and citizens ahead of party interests?Who will appoint capable professionals rather than the politically connected? Who will strengthen institutions instead of patronage networks? Who understands that ethical leadership is not a slogan but the foundation upon which functioning municipalities are built?Encouragingly, these questions are becoming more common and blind party loyalty appears to be weakening as competence, integrity and delivery become increasingly important considerations for voters.Reasons to remain hopeful.South Africa is too often judged solely by its failures, overlooking the institutions that continue to defend our constitutional democracy. Our independent judiciary remains strong. Investigative journalism continues to expose wrongdoing. Institutions such as SARS, the National Prosecuting Authority, the Special Investigating Unit and the Auditor-General have demonstrated that capable leadership, backed by professional staff, can reverse years of institutional decline.Alongside them stand courageous whistleblowers, community organisations, businesses and countless active citizens who refuse to accept poor governance as inevitable.These are not the characteristics of a country beyond repair. They are the foundations upon which renewal can be built.But renewal will not happen on its own.History shows that meaningful reform rarely begins inside institutions that have become comfortable with weak accountability. It usually comes from sustained pressure outside government, from civil society, independent media, organised business and active citizens demanding better governance.The coming local elections in around ten weeks’ time, offers an opportunity not simply to change councils, but to change direction. Johannesburg is not beyond saving. Neither are the many municipalities struggling under the weight of poor leadership, financial mismanagement and corruption..Read more:.Solly Moeng: Beyond voter education, let’s build South Africa through civic education.Recovery, however, is never automatic.It requires citizens who vote thoughtfully, remain engaged long after election day and continue demanding accountability from those they elect. Politicians alone will not determine South Africa’s future. Citizens will, but they must seize the day and in doing so, be cognisant that it is extremely uncommon for those who created the problems in the first place, to be in charge of successful reform strategies going forward. It’s almost unheard of.Our country’s greatest challenge is not a shortage of capable people. It is a shortage of ethical, courageous leadership willing to unlock their potential.Rebuilding South Africa will not start with another policy document or political slogan, but with better leadership. .*Wayne Duvenage is the CEO of OUTA.Sign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox every morning on weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa's bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here.

Only leadership will rebuild SA's municipalities: OUTA's Wayne Duvenage

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