Senior ANC figures, including deputy president Paul Mashatile, Thoko Didiza, Fikile Mbalula, Ronald Lamola and Dr Kgosientsho Ramokgopa – are increasingly being touted as possible contenders to succeed party leader President Cyril Ramaphosa. The ANC will celebrate its 114th anniversary in the North West amid mounting internal pressure, as the party confrontsleadership succession,deep-rooted factional divisions, and ongoing questions over corruption that continue to undermine its stability. Traditionally, the January 8 celebrations are used to project unity and reaffirm the ANC’s historic mission.
This year, however, the event unfolds against a sobering political backdrop. Once the unchallenged centre of politics, the ANC is now grappling with declining electoral support, internal paralysis and a crisis of confidence among its own members and supporters. At the core of the party’s instability is a simmering succession battle that has intensified ahead of the next elective conference.
Competing factions, loosely aligned around power blocs rather than clear ideological differences, are already manoeuvring for influence. This has deepened divisions within the party, weakening organisational coherence and undermining its ability to govern decisively. Factionalism featured prominently at theANC’s National General Council (NGC)in December, where leaders delivered blunt assessments of a movement at risk of self-destruction.
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Delegates acknowledged that internal divisions, coupled with corruption and ill-discipline, have severely damaged the party’s standing and distracted it from addressing the country’s pressing socio-economic challenges. The NGC resolved that the ANC must confront what it described as “rogue elements” within its ranks, members accused of prioritising personal and factional interests over the collective good of the organisation. While no names were mentioned, the discussions reflected growing frustration with a culture of impunity that has persisted despite repeated calls for renewal.
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