Examining the impact of political patronage on the efficacy of SAA in executing its mandate

Abstract

Political interference has been one of the leading factors in inhibiting state-owned entities reach their mandates. Through political patronage, political elites are the gateway to the SOE's thus impacting the efficacy of most state-owned entities. In this regard, South African Airways (SAA) is also one of the entities in the grip of corruption due to political patronage. Therefore, this political patronage has been the difference between the efficacy of SAA in executing its mandate. SAA has been taking center stage due to corruption, maladministration, and failure to execute its mandate as a result of political interference as well as patronage. This paper reviews existing literature on the effect of political patronage on the efficacy of SAA in executing its mandate. In doing so, the paper employed qualitative techniques. Document analysis was utilized to understand the effect of political patronage on SAA's ability to execute its mandate. Eventually, the paper discovered that political patronage affects the ability of SAA to execute its mandate. The paper then closes by making recommending mechanisms for inhibiting political interference in SOE most specifically SAA.