Responsible Citizens within Social Contract within the Representative Democracy: Mission and Political Theology Perspectives

Abstract

This article focuses on the social contract within democratic South Africa, as well as the success and failure of the people and the government to adhere to the social contract. The point of departure is the definition and clarification of democracy in general and democracy in Africa, with particular reference to participatory democracy. The responsibilities of the people within the social contract are as follows: after they have delegated their power to the government, they are responsible for their moral, social, economic, and political responsibilities and obligations. This process entails transferring power from participatory democracy to representative democracy. The researcher reflects on the Municipal Structures Act No. 117 of 1998, which aims to deepen participatory democracy within the social contract signed with the Local Council during the local election. The purpose is to deepen the role of the church in educating the people on their responsibilities and obligations within the social contract and to advocate for well-informed voters as actors within the social contract. The goal is for the church to play its prophetic and missional role in guiding and teaching its congregants about their responsibility within the social contract. The primary outcome of this article is to demonstrate that once congregants are equipped and informed about the social contract, they willparticipate effectively within the social contract as voters and active actors in the governance of the country in general and local government in particular.