Khama and Jonathan: Leadership Strategies in Contemporary Southern Africa
An analysis was made of the relevance of general principles of authority to southern African conditions. Max Weber's typology of legitimacy is applied to political events and leadership in Botswana and Lesotho prior to 1974 in order to assess the potential for traditional, charismatic, and lega...
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| Published in: | The Journal of developing areas 1981-01, Vol.15 (2), p.173-198 |
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| Main Author: | |
| Format: | Article |
| Language: | eng |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Get full text |
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| Summary: | An analysis was made of the relevance of general principles of authority to southern African conditions. Max Weber's typology of legitimacy is applied to political events and leadership in Botswana and Lesotho prior to 1974 in order to assess the potential for traditional, charismatic, and legal-rational ideologies and institutions as bases for authority. Botswana and Lesotho became sovereign states in the same week in 1966, and although they shared great similarity in political culture, social structure, colonial experience, and economic dependence, political life in the states developed in 2 diametrically opposed directions. This circumstance seems due to the major differences in political leadership strategies followed by Seretse Khama, president of Botswana, and Leabua Jonathan, prime minister of Lesotho. The leadership patterns of both men are systematically contrasted by relating them to Weber's typology. A comparison of events in both states shows the sources of authority to be complex; elements of all 3 Weberian models are present. It is evident that Khama's government has succeeded in establishing authority and that Jonathan's has failed. |
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| ISSN: | 0022-037X 1548-2278 |