Johannesburg – The delay to the start of the 55th ANC national conference has not dampened the spirits of the few delegates who have arrived and been processed at the Nasrec conference.
Most of those have entered the plenary session venue for the official opening of the conference, where ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa is set to give his political report before the resumption of the official day of the conference.
ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe made the announcement before the start of the plenary session that this has since been postponed to after lunch.
Mantashe said registration delays have resulted in hundreds of delegates waiting to be processed for accreditation at a nearby Unisa conference centre.
Various delegates who have already been granted access to the plenary venue were upbeat about their choice of leaders, with some delegates from the Eastern Cape calling for the return of President Cyril Ramaphosa for his second term and a handful from KwaZulu-Natal calling for a change in leadership.
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Eastern Cape delegates are upbeat ahead of the plenary session singing songs in support of Ramaphosa's second term pic.twitter.com/UPWqASVrOe
“We do not want him back. We want change, and change will come, come voting time,” one delegate from KZN said amid songs and jubilation.
Another representative of the ANC from the Eastern Cape, however, said they would ensure that Ramaphosa realised his second term as the leader of the governing party.
“We, as the Eastern Cape delegates, want Ramaphosa to retain his position. We will ensure his bid for the second term succeeds,” she said.
It remains to be seen who will triumph over the hearts and minds of the delegates, as some delegates have remained guarded in their choice for ANC president, with one delegate refusing to be drawn into revealing their choice.
“It is still too early to say. We will have to wait and see,” the Northern Cape delegate said.
The Star