Browsing by Author "Vanqa, Sakhile Siphelele"

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    Regulating lobbying’s influence on trade policy in South Africa to achieve openness, transparency and integrity.
    (University of the Western Cape, 2024) Vanqa, Sakhile Siphelele
    It is a narrative as ancient as time itself that wherever power is amassed by individuals or groups, others instinctively align themselves with it, seeking to exploit that power for their own interests. This phenomenon is epitomised by lobbyists, whose roots can be traced back, according to American political scientist Lipsen, to the Garden of Eden, where the serpent lobbied Eve to persuade Adam to defy his covenant with God, lending credence to Lipsen’s assertion that lobbying is the oldest profession in the world. In today’s world, biblical covenants have given way to social contracts between governments and citizens in terms of social contract theory which posits that citizens relinquish power to governments in exchange for governance aligned with their interests; while lobbying has surged into a multi-billion dollar industry, with the United States alone spending $4.26 billion in lobbying practices in 2023.