For the very first time since the dawn of democracy, the African National Congress (ANC) is going to the January 8 Statement, the party’s 113th-anniversary celebrations, wounded and limping, following a decline in electoral support.
This forced the party to form the coalition government under the Government of National Unity (GNU) banner.
The ANC has not only lost support in the national, provincial and local spheres, but sadly, some of its key members and leaders died last year, some early this year, and they include former finance minister Tito Mboweni and former state enterprises minister Pravin Gordhan, among others.
Another loss came when some ANC members joined the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MKP), founded by former ANC president Jacob Zuma.
Over the last three decades, the party enjoyed two-thirds majority votes countrywide, except for the Western Cape. However, during the May 2024 general election, the ANC suffered a humiliating defeat, dropping below 50%.
But the question is, can the ANC bounce back from these setbacks and reclaim the lost ground?
Professor Siphamandla Zondi an analyst and director of the Institute for Pan African Thought and Conversation at the University of Johannesburg, said if the ANC wants to make a come back, it must address the factors that caused it to lose support.
Among them, he mentioned arrogance, the fatigue among the people who felt that their lives were not changing and that the party divided itself into two through the formation of the MK Party.
“We have not seen a change of behaviour which would indicate that there is a process of correction both in the party and the government. Whatever the cause they accept, they must initiate a cause of action to overcome that factor so that they don’t lose again,” Zondi said.
He added that change of behaviour in government must be visible in terms of service delivery, including water, housing, infrastructure, etc. He, however, noted that “we have not seen a change of conduct over the past few months, post the election”.
Zondi advised the ANC to use the January 8 Statement to rescue itself and the country, by focusing on little things that can be achieved.
He warned that the party’s talk of disbandment of provincial leaderships might put it back to where it was during the May 2024 general election.
“It must now be visible that they have decided to manage things internally. Here I’m referring to the election results in KwaZulu-Natal and Gauteng.”
This year’s event will take place on January 11, at the Mandela Park Stadium, in Khayelitsha, Western Cape – with President Cyril Ramaphosa giving the key address. The venue has a capacity of 22 000 people.
ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula said that the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) chose the Western Cape due to its ties to the province’s ‘profound struggle against colonialism, slavery and apartheid’.
“This year’s celebrations are hosted in the Western Cape, the province that embodies the dual legacies of oppression and resistance… The people of this province have been at the forefront of the fight for justice.”
Mbalula said the event also reaffirms the party’s commitment to the liberation and development of South Africa. He said the ANC aims to improve the lives of people who have been neglected in the Western Cape.
“The January 8 Statement in 1972 was a clarion call to intensify the fight against apartheid, at the height of repression, when the enemy thought we were broken.
“The ANC declared with militant clarity ‘we are unbroken, we are undeterred, we are advancing’. We repeat these words today. As the ANC faces the challenge of rebuilding and renewal, we are unbroken, we are undeterred and we are advancing forward,” Mbalula said.
ANC KwaZulu-Natal chairperson Siboniso Duma said the challenges that they have faced have galvanised them to double their efforts to ensure that the ANC remains the only vehicle for the transformation of society.
The pathfinders (JL Dube, Sol Plaatje, Pixley ka Isaka Seme and Josiah Gumede) of this freedom believed that the ANC – Umbutho Wabantu – was the only organisation with the capacity to lead the government of the day, Duma said.
“If they were around, they would have reiterated that indeed, the ANC belongs to the people, not to individuals. And it is the people that must benefit from the ANC as a vehicle for transformation. They would have encouraged all deployees of the ANC in all spheres of government to double their efforts and bridge the gap between government and ordinary members of society,” said Duma.
The ANC KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Executive Committee agreed that as part of the renewal process, it will not hesitate to act against any wrongdoing, he said.
“We will continue to act firmly on acts of corruption, misconduct or anyone who brings the party into disrepute. Critically, we believe that the ANC is successfully cleansing itself. Disloyal members who joined the organisation for self-serving reasons are slowly leaving the organisation,” Duma said.
He said the ANC renewal programme is focusing on creating ANC members who are ideologically grounded and firm behind its values.
“Loyalty to individual leaders eroded loyalty to the ANC values. As a result, the ideological posture of some ANC members was weak and steeped in factional tendencies tied to the leader being supported.”
Only ideologically grounded members will stand firm and fight against the total destruction of the ANC as a symbol of hope and a vehicle of people’s power, he said.
It remains to be seen whether the party can successfully renew itself.