Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is the New Nation Movement (NNM)?
NNM is a people-driven initiative to unite all citizens who want to see change towards an inclusive, ethical, accountable governance system in South Africa. This is ‘governance’ in the broad sense of the word, involving nation-builders in all spheres of society, including government. NNM is the collective action of the people to move from division to unity, from brokenness to healing, from passivity to action, in the building of a better, greater, South Africa for ALL. NNM’s purpose is to facilitate the transfer of sovereign power and authority to govern, too, and locate it in, the people of South Africa.
2. Is NNM a political party?
No. NNM is a non-partisan people’s platform that unites the voices of all role players and individuals who share the view that it’s time to change South Africa, and positively impact all the spheres that constitute society, for good. We are nation-builders uniting into a movement.
3. Can any political party or its members be part of the movement?
Yes, everyone is welcome who subscribes to the values of the movement. With regard to political parties, NNM does not interfere or compete with political formations. It is simply a loose, yet organised, a platform aimed at enabling like-minded citizens to speak with one voice and exercise their collective influence to build a better South Africa. NNM is creating a platform with the potential to unite the vote of those who share the same values.
4. Who can be part of the New Nation Movement?
All role players who want to be part of nation-building across the spectrum of South African society, including political parties, business structures, religious structures, professional bodies, non-profit organisations, student and educational bodies, traditional structures, community structures, labour structures, individuals, and any type of group that shares the same values, vision, cause, and goals for a better South Africa. By uniting, we the people ourselves become the movement.
5. What are the limitations of the current political system? Why the need for change?
Regrettably, the current political system in South Africa is NOT true democracy. In order to achieve true democracy, the power to govern must rest in the people, and by delegation through their freely chosen representatives and not primarily in political parties, as is largely the case in present-day South Africa. Change is needed firstly because citizens actually have no say in decisions that affect them. Secondly, we, the people, cannot choose leaders we consider credible. Citizens have to live with whomever political parties choose for them, and the decisions they make on our behalf. There is also no way the people can hold such leaders accountable. This must change. That is exactly why this peoples movement is needed – not just for the sake of change, but to bring real solutions to leadership issues and implementation troubles.
6. How does the movement propose to change this situation?
NNM proposes a governance system – as approved by the people – that gives power to the people to participate in parliamentary decision-making, through credible leaders whom they elect directly from their communities. This will require fundamental changes to the nation’s political system that must be enshrined in a revised Constitution. As we, the people, organise ourselves into Peoples Assemblies in communities all across South Africa, we can ensure that the decisions that we make are executed at local, provincial, and national level by ethical leaders who have been appointed by the people, and who are fully accountable to the people. Peoples Assemblies also become units of nation-building collaborating all over South Africa and effecting change at all levels and in all spheres of society.
7. Why the need for a movement? Is this not the responsibility of political parties?
There are currently very limited ways that citizens can directly influence the political system. Even a referendum depends on parliamentary sanction, in a system that is controlled by political parties, which is the problem we want to correct. If it is the will of the people, the best way to bring change is for all of us, the people of South Africa, to unite and rally for the CAUSE of Building a New Nation. This will ensure that there is a critical mass of the population acting to bring true change.
8. If NNM is a non-partisan movement, how can the people, through NNM, actively determine outcomes of elections?
NNM is a platform representing the collective cause of the people of SA which they can exercise through a collective electoral mandate. As a nation-builder you are expressing a Call for REAL change, to achieve three specific goals, amongst others:
- You participate in the governance of the nation (resulting in social , economic and political transformation);
- You contribute towards defining a Constitutional framework based on ethical values (see the Bill of Values); and
- You directly participate in electing your representatives/leaders in all spheres and at all levels of government.
This change gives birth to a truly New Nation, yielding collective benefits for ALL. NNM is about good governance, not politics.
9. What change does NNM seek to bring to the electoral system?
NNM proposes a constituency-based election system, which was recommended by the Van Zyl Slabbert Commission in 2003, but which was never implemented. This is a system in which communities, through structures and Assemblies, elect leaders to represent them in legislative bodies as independent of political party control but directly accountable to the people who elected them. This is a shift from the current system in which political parties alone are represented in parliament. This allows for the election of ethical and credible leaders who are approved by the people and are accountable to their communities. This would create a more just and participative democracy in South Africa. United We Stand
10. What change does the movement seek to bring to South Africa’s governance system?
People’s direct participation. NNM proposes a system that organises communities in a manner that enables ordinary citizens to participate in the governance of both their communities and the country. The system will operate through existing societal structures, as well as through the local Peoples Assemblies and Councils that elect leaders (as part of the movement). Through these, all South Africans are able to make inputs to national policy. A culture of nation-building is thus firmly developed throughout the nation.
11. What change does the movement seek to bring to the current Constitution?
Whilst the SA Constitution is good in many respects, there are elements of it that allow corruptive practices to flourish because they are too open-ended, and/or too broad. NNM proposes a revision of the Constitution, to allow for ethical, righteous, just, and equitable values, which are shared by the people, to be enshrined as cornerstones of our society. In a true democracy, the Constitution must reflect the will of the people.
12. Is NNM a religious movement, given the focus on ethics and values?
No. We hold that there are certain values and standards, ethics and principles that can establish a society on a firm foundation for justice, equity, and prosperity. NNM is a governance movement through which the people want to establish good standards in society to promote progress and to put an end to the moral decay in South Africa. Now we need absolute values and ethics that we can trust (e.g. a Bill of Values). (Note: When referring to ‘absolute values’, it means that they are universally acknowledged so that we won’t compromise on them.) Hence, as concerned citizens, we, the people, must define and advance absolute values, morals, and ethics that are embodied in the collective convictions that the people of South Africans profess and desire to see in our communities. They will serve to guide and to set a standard of best practice. In a true democracy, the freedom of the individual and the values of the collective are protected – a healthy balance. The purpose is to inspire and rejuvenate moral courage in South Africa.
13. What does the movement’s ‘inclusivity’ mean?
Everyone is welcome, but not everything. Any person from any race, culture, gender, belief, or background should feel they have a place in the shared values, vision, cause and goals of the movement. Like any other initiative, the NNM platform has a certain core ideal. All are invited to participate in and become part of the movement. The movement is in actual fact for the good of ALL South Africans (whether part of it or not). This is how inclusive it is and it would never require anyone to give up other affiliations, though the movement will not compromise on its Values, Cause and Goals, as determined by the will of the people, democratically. As a matter of principle, all individuals’ input and effort within the movement must be for the good of the nation. Through a culture of serving one another, we unite for a common Cause with shared values to restore purpose together in South Africa on an ethical basis for the good of ALL.
14. What is the core ideal of NNM?
To be a unified non-partisan peoples movement, anchored in absolute values, bringing together ethical leaders and nation-builders for the purpose of transforming all spheres of the nation, including governance, and bringing justice, integrity, equity, healing, and restoration of the South African dream.
15. Who is the leadership of this movement?
The people! The emphasis of the movement is on a governance system of the people, by the people, and for the people. From time to time the people will delegate specific representatives to take up responsibilities in the movement to provide servant leadership. In the meantime a team of concerned citizens from different races, cultures and genders have been working, as caretakers, to set the foundations for the movement, in consultation with the people. Leadership will be elected by the people themselves when the movement is launched in October 2018. The main requirement is that it should be a ‘unifying leadership’, meaning it must unite the people of South Africa around good values. Note that leadership in this movement is not about seeking the limelight. Good leaders lift their people to the forefront with a serving heart. The movement is essentially about the people, not its leaders.
16. How do individuals and organisations become part of the movement?
NNM is not a membership-based platform but a convergence of convictions, values, and interests for the building of a united South Africa that serves the best legitimate interest of all. Individuals and organisations who identify with the cause of ethical nation-building can register on the website. You will receive a response and directions pertaining to the next steps you can take. Alternatively, or if you do not have access to the internet, you can send an SMS or a WhatsApp, to the number on the contact page.