The revelation of the ANC‘s list of names for the 6 th parliament has got the public wondering exactly which ANC faction was in charge; is it the ANC of Ramaphosa or the ANC of Magashule? This has led to voters wondering if a vote for the ANC is a vote for the wayward ANC faction seemingly led by its Secretary General and therefore a continuation of malfeasance that became a norm during the Zuma years.
Voters cannot be blamed for thinking in this fashion as the ANC parliamentary list is tainted with names of people who were allegedly involved in wrong doing ranging from corruption, state capture, lying to courts and sheer incompetence.
Another aspect that fuels this skepticism and cynicism towards the ANC’s desire to renew itself is the apparent push back against President Ramaphosa’s leadership within the ANC. This has led to some going as far as to suggest that Ramaphosa will be removed after the elections at the NGC of the ANC to be held next year.
I find this hard to believe as this would be an unprecedented move and I don’t believe that the Magashule faction has the numbers or are able as yet to pull this off. The next place to remove him would be the 2022 elective conference.
ANC politics just like in the fantasy TV series Game of Thrones can be unpredictable and involves many proxy battles.
Some of the current players in this ANC "game of thrones" might even be eliminated before the 2022 elective conference as the ANC is yet to host many regional and provincial conferences in the lead up to the 2022 elective conference.
Who's in charge?
To answer the question, which ANC faction was in charge of government and its affairs; is it the ANC of Ramaphosa or the ANC of Magashule, one needs to look at Ramaphosa‘s tenure as president thus far and evaluate if the wayward faction has been able to frustrate his renewal efforts and drive for excellence in government. The answer would be a resounding no.
The ANC SG who is the main face of the push back campaign has a very limited role in the running of government. The same can be said about the deputy president David Mabuza as it was the case when Zuma was Mbeki‘s deputy and when Ramaphosa was Zuma‘s deputy. The president has always been the one in charge of his government and calls upon his deputy whenever he sees fit.
It is clear that Ramaphosa has been fully in charge of government and has been able to run it the way he sees fit with little hindrance. The president has been able to asset his own leadership style and vision in government as seen by hosting investment and jobs summits and appointing special envoys to focus and target foreign direct investments, these are not necessarily ANC programs but his own vision. He also appointed various commissions to help him renew state institutions; these commissions have since helped him to remove Tom Moyane at SARS, Nomgcobo and Lawrence Mrwebi at the NPA and officials at state security. This has now set these institutions on a new path of
renewal and excellence.
Ramaphosa has even introduced his own style of appointing high profile state institution officials.
Where candidates apply and are subjected to a selection process with interviews conducted and the best candidate selected instead of just simply making a presidential appointment which has been the norm previously. This type of selection has since led to the appointment of a new SARS commissioner and a new NPA National director of public prosecutions.
The cleanup at SoEs has also continued without any resistance from the ANC where delinquent board members and executives has been removed and replaced. Even on the hot potato that is the land question where he is expected to implement the ANC resolution of expropriation of land without compensation he appears to be doing so in his own way. He appointed an advisory panel to assist him to craft a land policy that will satisfy the ANC resolution and the broader South African society.
In conclusion I can say that as long as Ramaphosa remains ANC president he will be able to run the government as he sees fit and therefore your vote for the ANC will not be a vote for the wayward faction of the ANC but mainly a vote for Ramaphosa.
* Rendani Mathoho is a mechanical engineer based in Gauteng. He writes in his personal capacity.
** The views expressed here are not necessarily those of Independent Media.
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