Consistent Underlying Policies. Government policies should have the welfare of all the people as their primary objective. They should be consistent between alternative forms of activity and between various members of society. No one should be targeted for either preferential treatment or harsh treatment merely because they are considered by government to supply a service of greater or lesser importance, nor should government in writing laws be more favourably disposed towards some citizens than they are towards others. The rule of law requires that government should enact only such laws as are general in nature, are applicable to everyone including itself, and which therefore do not attempt to bring about particular outcomes. There has to be a level playing field for everyone. The rule of law was described by Nobel Laureate Friedrich Hayek in his book The Constitution of Liberty: The conception of freedom under the law ... rests on the contention that when we obey laws, in the sense of general abstract rules laid down irrespective of their application to us, we are not subject to another man's will and are therefore free. It is because the lawgiver does not know the particular cases to which the rule will apply, and it is because the judge who will apply them has no choice in drawing the conclusions that follow from the existing body of rules and the particular facts of the case, that it can be said that laws and not men rule. Because the rule is laid down in ignorance of the particular case and no man's will decides the coercion used to enforce it, the law is not arbitrary. This, however, is true only if by "law" we mean the general rules that apply equally to everybody. The Basic Conditions of Employment Bill contains provisions that are despotic in nature. They override all voluntary agreements that individuals may wish to enter into. They deprive unemployed people of the right to enter into agreements which they may regard as beneficial. In order to create the free society for which the majority of South Africans have been yearning for so long, it will take a conscious and decisive effort on the part of government to root out all provisions of a despotic nature contained in legislation enacted by previous administrations. It will also be essential to ensure that no new despotic legislation is added to the statute book. The infamous apartheid period was only possible because the rule of law was ignored and extensive arbitrary powers were given to the civil service to follow differing ...
Consistent Underlying Policies. Policies should have the welfare of the people as their primary objective. They should be consistent between alternative forms of activity and certain professions or occupations should not be singled out for either preferential treatment or harsh treatment merely because they fall under different Ministries or because they are considered by government to supply a service of greater or lesser importance. (A recent example would be the proposal that newly qualified doctors should undergo compulsory service similar to military service whilst lawyers, accountants, engineers, architects etc are not targeted for this type of detention without trial.)
Consistent Underlying Policies. Policies should have the welfare of the people as their primary objective. They should be consistent between alternative forms of activity and certain professions or occupation should not be singled out for either preferential treatment or harsh treatment merely because they fall under different Ministries or because they are considered by government to supply a service of greater or lesser importance. (A recent example would be the proposal that newly qualified doctors should undergo compulsory service similar to military service whilst lawyers, accountants, engineers, architects etc. are not targeted for this treatment.
