Please join us for the first SWOP Breakfast Seminar of the semester, on Friday, 15 February 2019.
Topic: The politics of corruption: from Zuma to Ramaphosa... and after?
Speaker(s): Karl von Holdt
Venue: Hofmeyr House, next to Jubilee Hall, East Campus, Braamfontein (parking available at venue)
Date: 15 February 2019
Time: 8:00-9:30 (Breakfast served from 7:30)
Abstract: The prevailing public narrative about corruption tends to present it as a matter of moral failure on the part of a number of individuals (and perhaps an organisation) and legal failure on the part of state institutions. The presentation will attempt to reframe 'corruption' as an important element in processes of class formation in post-apartheid South Africa, and 'looting' as a form of primitive accumulation on the part of a nascent elite. These practices are embedded in moral orders through which they are rendered legitimate and justified in the South African context. The presentation will explore the question whether this constitutes an alternative accumulation model to that presented by globalised 'neoliberalism', and discuss also the necessity for Ramaphosa to establish a stable elite coalition within the ANC, and likewise the challenges that make this an unlikely prospect. Finally, the prospects for an alternative counter-movement for embedded development will be considered.
The SWOP Breakfast Seminar is a platform for sharing new SWOP research with stakeholders inside and outside of the university. Hofmeyr House is a venue that facilitates networking and lively discussion amongst all participants over a full breakfast.
We look forward to seeing you at this and forthcoming SWOP Breakfast Seminars! The full programme for the semester will be out soon.
