PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IN
Date
2011-06-08
Authors
PITJADI, NGOATO
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
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Abstract
The main objective of this research was to explore the meaning of public participation as
understood within the context of Orlando East backyard renewal pilot project. From the
inception of the policy process several pledges have been made by the MEC for Housing
and subsequently Premier Shilowa to involve the intended beneficiaries, both tenants and
landlords, in the roll out of the new backyard dwellings in the pilot project and the
province at large, with partial or no fulfilment. The community-based structure that is, the
PSC was constituted to facilitate public participation in this policy process. It is against
this background that, the researcher saw the need to reflect on whether the PSC has
created enabling environment in which ordinary people particularly beneficiaries can
participate.
The overall finding in the study reveals that the effectiveness and ability of the PSC to
manage the policy process in terms of ensuring that popular participation prevails in the
policy process was very limited. This is because majority of the intended beneficiaries
have been left out of the policy process, hence their despondency towards the policy
process. Furthermore the perceptions from the respondents about why this policy process
constantly stalled have been told from many different angles, each with varying degrees
of validity.
Actually the respondents interviewed in the study had varying perspectives with one
party blaming another party for lack of progress. Nonetheless, the varying perspectives
offer some explanations notably, that says public participation as a principle to advance
participatory governance is inherently contestable and extremely elusive concept. Even
though policy stagnation in the pilot project cannot be ascribed to a single factor, but, for
the realisation of this policy objective requires among other things leadership ready and
capable to manage the policy process. The failure to provide leadership by the PSC
stands in glaring contrast to the eagerness with which some beneficiaries have shown in
their various encounter with researcher
Description
MM - P&DM
Keywords
Rentals, Community participation, Gauteng, Housing, Gauteng