A TALE OF TWO CAPITALS: PIETERMARITZBURG VERSUS ULUNDI

ABSTRACT

The political and social transformation of the 1990s required the bantustans, the minions of apartheid, to be spatially reintegrated into mainstream South Africa. There has been some academic and media speculation about the fate of capital cities in the former bantustans in post-apartheid South Africa. This paper critically assesses the different arguments presented to support location of the capital city in KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). In KZN the debate about the location of the capital has been intense and emotional, sometimes threatening to upset the fragile political balance in the province. Since 1994 there were calls within the echelons of the IFP for the capital to be established at Ulundi. However, the ANC, other political parties and the business sector preferred Pietermaritzburg as capital. The old power struggle between the ANC and the IFP was seen to be at the heart of the disagreement. A major issue was the role of the capital in promoting growth and development, and whether its location should be centralised or decentralised. Based on the international experience the paper suggests that the new capital cities like Ulundi would not realise the great expectations for promoting growth and development for two reasons. Firstly, there were serious economic and financial constraints. Secondly, the commitment of many governments to stimulate growth and development often served as a smokescreen to conceal political motives to relocate capitals. Clearly, there is a role for Ulundi as a regional development node, with an agricultural/rural focus, for which the town is well located. However, politically this would be a consolation prize for the IFP.