‘I’m viewing my options,’ says Lesufi on availability for ANC’s top positions

ANC Gauteng chairperson Panyaza Lesufi said on Thursday that he may not run for election to the party’s top seven in 2027.

On Thursday, the ANC Gauteng briefed the media on the outcomes of the inaugural lekgotla, which was held on 3 and 4 May, and addressed several issues in the province.

Among those is the public health system in Gauteng, which, according to the ANC, is overburdened by patients from other provinces and countries.

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The province is also experiencing challenges of school overcrowding, crime and infrastructure vandalism.

“South Africa’s economic structure remains highly untransformed and continues to perpetuate economic high concentration of skewed ownership, which produces exclusion of the majority from the mainstream economy, with resultant high unemployment, gross inequalities and poverty,” it said.

ANC leadership contests

The party’s conference will be held in December 2027, at which time it will elect its top seven leaders. The months leading up to such conferences have never been without controversy, as members share their intentions to contest positions.

The party’s secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has previously cautioned his comrades against leadership conversations, saying they divert the party from its objectives, which include recovering lost ground in the previous election.

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“We said it’s an easy discussion, but you can’t pursue your membership in that direction when you are a 40% party, because we will be discussing the next leader of the ANC after 2026, when we are probably a 30% party. You need to discuss that question when you have shown that you are on a path of recovery,” he told Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh.

Is Lesufi available?

Lesufi on Thursday would not limit his options to just the party’s top seven positions.

“I’m viewing my options. I’ve been in politics since I was 13 years old. If you speak about 2027, it might be far-fetched. Let’s wait. It’s not about contestation, there might be other opportunities that might be opened,” said Lesufi.

“If you’re an activist, there are many things that you can do. To view that as leaving politics is far-fetched. I’m an activist in and out and will never leave the ANC; that’s another important aspect. If there are other areas that I’m assigned, either by the party or the government, we’ll attend to that. But leaving politics is not something that I can do. There are many opportunities that one is looking at in terms of the future.”

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