…after Ramaphosa’s public criticism of ‘incompetent’ ANC councillors

By: Refilwe Mochoari

The controversy surrounding ANC President, Cyril Ramaphosa’s remarks has set the stage for a potential explosive showdown at the fifth National General Council (NGC) meeting scheduled for 8 to 12 December at Nasrec in Johannesburg.

The party’s internal dynamics will be tested, and members will need to navigate their differences and find ways to move forward for the organisation's future.

The NGC is held every five years and serves as a platform for ANC members to debate and discuss the party’s future, and Ramaphosa’s remarks are likely to be a major topic of discussion.

Ramaphosa ignited a firestorm earlier this week when he made explosive comments during a councillors’ Roll Call, where over 4,000 councillors convened for a local government plan at the FNB Stadium in Soweto. He said that DA-led municipalities are better run than ANC-led municipalities.

This gathering was part of efforts to ensure its councillors remain aligned with the ANC mandate.

 In his address, Ramaphosa singled out the Maluti-a-Phofung local Municipality in Free State and the Ditsobotla local Municipality in North West as the worst-performing municipalities in the country comparing them to the City of Cape Town and the Stellenbosch municipality both in the Western Cape Province a DA-led province.

Ramaphosa urged ANC councillors to learn from DA-controlled municipalities.

“It is usually painful each time when the Auditor General comes to report to cabinet and they put up their report and those municipalities that do best are not ANC-controlled municipalities and I can name it here because there is nothing wrong with competition, they are often DA-controlled municipalities, Ramaphosa said.

Ramaphosa challenged the party to learn from its rivals asking councillors to consider what the DA was doing differently in places such as Cape Town and Stellenbosch.

“And there is nothing wrong with us saying we want to go and see what Cape Town is doing, we want to go and see what Stellenbosch is doing, how they craft everything.

“We need to be moving up the ladder or being good at what we do, we cannot forever stay at the bottom,” the President said.

But political analysts say Ramaphosa has committed political suicide and might expert some nonchalant behaviour from members.

They say that the words he used, are unwise, while ANC councillors and members came out guns blazing and expressed their dissatisfaction saying that the President’s comments have undermined the organisation.

Political analyst from the University of Free State Professor Sethulego Matebesi says apart from angering many of his comrades, Ramaphosa has acknowledged that there are capacity issues in the ANC which are added on top of the corruption by its own members.

“This is also an acknowledgement that cadre deployment is not working, but you do not go in public like that against an organisation that you are leading.

“You cannot publicly acknowledge the success of another party.

“Remember that people’s alliances change and members will use this against him, especially because they know that he is not coming back as the president.

“He might experience some booing during his speeches at the NGC because these kinds of statements are not good for a bleeding organisation,” said Matebesi.

Another political analyst Prof Ntsikelelo Breakfast from the Nelson Mandela University said these comments have landed Ramaphosa in hot water.

He says the President’s utterances could well backfire with the DA likely to use his words against him as part of their own political campaigning.

“There are things that you can acknowledge in private, but I think it was unwise to say that.

“Politics is a game of competition, so how do you tell your troops to look up to your political competitor? You might as well tell them to vote for that political party,” Breakfast said.

One ANC councillor who prefers to remain anonymous attended the gathering has expressed his dissatisfaction to Journal News.

“In recent years, the ANC has faced internal struggles and a growing divide among its members. This has come to a head with the upcoming NGC where the political and ideological standoff within the ANC will finally be addressed and hopefully resolved.

He says the NGC is also expected to address the growing dissent against Ramaphosa within the ANC. While many see him as a strong and capable leader, there are some who question his policies and decisions which have led to a clear divide within the party.

“The stakes are high for the ANC at the NGC, as the decisions made will shape the party’s future and its ability to lead South Africa, said the ANC councillor.