The ANC will soon convene its provincial conferences, where branches nominate delegates to vote for provincial leaders. These branches then reconvene to nominate councillor candidates. But a new phenomenon has emerged in which regional leaders convene to determine the occupants of provincial positions.
Organisationally, there is no established structure in the ANC that is referred to as a regional leadership core. Despite that, this entity has been issuing statements instructing branches to nominate specific comrades for provincial leadership positions. Effectively, this regional leadership core has usurped the role of the ANC branches as the basic units of the organisation.
Whether this serves as an existential threat to the movement at the grassroots level is uncertain. Proponents of the party’s renewal have remained silent on this new development. It appears that the cabal behind this phenomenon wants to convey a sense of unity.
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The ANC has suffered a significant setback by failing to secure a majority in the previous national elections and it is doubtful whether leadership arrangements have any bearing on its purported unity. A comrade once uttered a phrase that resonates deeply: “Before God kills you, He first makes you mad.” It is disheartening to observe that some of the behaviour displayed in the ANC suggests that we have indeed entered that era. The organisation has been championing renewal and numerous writers have shared their insights on what this renewal signifies.
Regrettably, since the last assessment made by Gwede Mantashe, the former secretary-general of the ANC, and adopted by the NEC, the movement has not demonstrated any willingness to abandon its old ways and embark on a new path. Instead, it appears to have refined a strategy for dismantling the organisation, as factions have been institutionalised as organisational structures.
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