The need for citizen participation in Zimbabwe
Contents
1.0 Introduction
Public policies are instruments through which the essential decisions of political authorities are executed (Dye as quoted in Zhou and Zvoushe, 2012). They provide mechanisms for the government to communicate their response to the demands of their citizenry. Public policies thus serve as conflict management tools at the domestic level by balancing competing values and interests. These domestic policies cover a wide range of areas such as land, defence, tax, labour and investment issues.
Internationally, public policies are the means for nations to market themselves to the world. It is generally agreed that people want governments that ensure their political and socioeconomic security. Governments therefore are expected to listen to the needs of the ‘people’ and propound policies that speak to these needs. The question is how and when these needs can be made known to the policymakers. This paper will give a background of policy making in general then show the state of policymaking in Zimbabwe currently. It will go on to discuss how citizens in Zimbabwe can acquire skills that enable them to participate fully in policymaking.
1.1 Citizen participation in policymaking
Pal as quoted in Zhou and Zvoushe (2012) observed that hidden agendas usually influence policy decisions. This may be because the ruling elite represent the needs of the rich who may have funded their campaigns. This may be the reason why Cyril Ramaphosa in South Africa was appointed as the deputy president. In Zimbabwe, Ndebeles, Ndau and Tongas felt marginalised by the ruling party mainly made up of the Shona tribes (Mandaza (1986) in Zhou and Zvoushe (2012)).
Participation was defined as the organised efforts to increase control over resources and regulative institutions in given social situations, on the part of groups and movements hitherto excluded from such control (Stiefel and Wolfe: 1994:5). This definition brings forth the element of deliberate
1.0 Introduction
Public policies are instruments through which the essential decisions of political authorities are executed (Dye as quoted in Zhou and Zvoushe, 2012). They provide mechanisms for the government to communicate their response to the demands of their citizenry. Public policies thus serve as conflict management tools at the domestic level by balancing competing values and interests. These domestic policies cover a wide range of areas such as land, defence, tax, labour and investment issues.
Internationally, public policies are the means for nations to market themselves to the world. It is generally agreed that people want governments that ensure their political and socioeconomic security. Governments therefore are expected to listen to the needs of the ‘people’ and propound policies that speak to these needs. The question is how and when these needs can be made known to the policymakers. This paper will give a background of policy making in general then show the state of policymaking in Zimbabwe currently. It will go on to discuss how citizens in Zimbabwe can acquire skills that enable them to participate fully in policymaking.
1.1 Citizen participation in policymaking
Pal as quoted in Zhou and Zvoushe (2012) observed that hidden agendas usually influence policy decisions. This may be because the ruling elite represent the needs of the rich who may have funded their campaigns. This may be the reason why Cyril Ramaphosa in South Africa was appointed as the deputy president. In Zimbabwe, Ndebeles, Ndau and Tongas felt marginalised by the ruling party mainly made up of the Shona tribes (Mandaza (1986) in Zhou and Zvoushe (2012)).
Participation was defined as the organised efforts to increase control over resources and regulative institutions in given social situations, on the part of groups and movements hitherto excluded from such control (Stiefel and Wolfe: 1994:5). This definition brings forth the element of deliberate
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