EDITOR – Just recently, the ANC celebrated its 105th birthday with all the ceremonious fanfare possible. 105 years and still going strong is certainly a great achievement and it may be recognized as one of the oldest political organisation in the world having produced iconic leaders.The founding fathers of the ANC espoused lofty ideals and were very disciplined and embraced those ideals with a genuine fervor and commitment – its as a result of these ideals and the “Freedom Charter” that the ANC was able to develop and
survive as an organisation that the world took seriously. It was also about the quality and stature of its early leadership and the discipline that they commanded from its membership that enhanced the ANC into its mature and respectable status.The ANC was conceived at a period when the majority of the indigenous people were relegated to second class citizenship and it gestated as a revolutionary movement under the banner of “freedom struggle” until 1994.
Come 105 years later and this very noble, respectable and moral organisation is fractured by nepotism, in-fighting, cronyism, factionalism, greed, corruption and a general lack of discipline and congruence. This became even more evident just hours after the President of the ANC delivered his message to the citizens of South Africa generally and specifically
to the ANC membership, essentially reminding them that the organisation expects discipline and congruence specifically urging the ANC membership to refrain from dabbling and speculating about who should succeed him as its leader, an election that would take place in December 2017 at the ANC’s Elective Conference. He urged the membership to be patient and also to follow the rules and process set out for the election of a new leader to play itself out.
However, his urging and appeal fell on deaf ears – both the ANCYL and the ANCWL almost immediately after the celebration and in defiance of its leader went on to nominate the name of Dr Nkosazana Clarice Dlamini-Zuma as its preferred candidate. This is just but one of the many occasions where these “arms” of the mother body have been defiant and this is why there has been claims by the veterans and stalwarts and the that the ANC is in crisis.
The ANC has been in political denial asserting that its stronger than ever before and that with God on its side it will emerge even stronger at the next general election to be held in April 2019. The problem with wall-papering over the cracks is that the cracks remain and will reveal itself when its too late to be remedied.
Sicario
Durban
