Publications
Partners
Johannesburg - Political killings in South Africa are not about political dominance but about getting to the trough first.
"Some of these guys literally come out of severe poverty and if they get kicked out they will be back there." said deputy CEO of the SA Institute of Race Relations Frans Cronje.
"The stakes are high... it's about money."
The number of politicians murdered the past five years has escalated, especially between 2010 and 2012.
KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga seem to be the worst affected - with 41 and five killed respectively.
Around the country, at least 46 officials from various political parties have been gunned down around the country.
Cronje said: "Yes South Africa is a democracy... but I can't think of another country that has this problem.
"We [the institute] have been hard pressed to find a single person killed over an idea. It all depends on tenders and corruption."
He said the issue had been swept under the carpet for far too long and was something that would become very controversial in the next five years.
Material gain, said Cronje, went hand in hand with politics.
This was especially true in a country such as South Africa where the previously poor were now in power.
"The fight for tenders is desperate," Cronje said.
*The story has been considerably shortened.
* Follow Fin24 on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.
"Some of these guys literally come out of severe poverty and if they get kicked out they will be back there." said deputy CEO of the SA Institute of Race Relations Frans Cronje.
"The stakes are high... it's about money."
The number of politicians murdered the past five years has escalated, especially between 2010 and 2012.
KwaZulu-Natal and Mpumalanga seem to be the worst affected - with 41 and five killed respectively.
Around the country, at least 46 officials from various political parties have been gunned down around the country.
Cronje said: "Yes South Africa is a democracy... but I can't think of another country that has this problem.
"We [the institute] have been hard pressed to find a single person killed over an idea. It all depends on tenders and corruption."
He said the issue had been swept under the carpet for far too long and was something that would become very controversial in the next five years.
Material gain, said Cronje, went hand in hand with politics.
This was especially true in a country such as South Africa where the previously poor were now in power.
"The fight for tenders is desperate," Cronje said.
*The story has been considerably shortened.
* Follow Fin24 on Facebook, Twitter and Google+.
