Against the Tide by Steven Friedman

The gap between what politicians say and what they do is often wide. It is likely to be very wide in the national coalition government, whose parties need to signal to their supporters that they have not 'sold out' while they continue to work together. Citizens will need to be on their guard and to look beyond the hype  to what the parties are really doing.

This is the view of my weekly Against the Tide column sent to subscribers this morning. To subscribe, visit the Against the Tide website. To discuss a reduced or free subscription, contact info@againstthetide.co.za

Steven Friedman is a public commentator and an academic, currently employed as a Research Professor at the University of Johannesburg. He has been writing on South African politics for the entire democratic period both as a scholar and public commentator. He has published books on South Africa’s transition to democracy, the role of the trade union movement, and current South African politics. He has also written columns and articles for several South African newspapers. His writing seeks to use academic research to shed light on current politics but to ensure that this is conveyed in a way easily understood by people who have no academic training.