With an elective conference looming, there are some proposed solutions to save the ANC in the region
The ANC in Johannesburg will soon host its elective conference, with some candidates hopeful of renewal.
Among the proposals to fix the party in the region are moving prominent members from township branches to those where they should actually be residing.
This is the proposal of Stan Itshegetseng, who is contesting for the position of deputy regional chairperson.
Itshegetseng wants to mobilise ANC councillors to lead campaigns where they live, starting with migrating President Cyril Ramaphosa’s membership from Chiawelo to Houghton, where he resides.
“This is a symbolic and practical act of localisation,” he said.
Tense conference ahead
While the exact date of the conference has not been communicated, some candidates have already begun their campaign for positions in the top five.
Itshegetseng is currently an official in the City of Johannesburg and belongs to a branch of the ANC in Soweto.
He believes he can help resolve some of the challenges the ANC faces, if elected.
“The future of the ANC in Johannesburg is at a crossroads; we either rise through renewal or we collapse through inertia. I believe renewal is possible — but it will not be handed to us.
“We must fight for it, tooth and nail, with grounded activism, clear messaging, a new culture of discipline, and generational reawakening,” he said.
Back to basics
Itshegetseng believes that one way of renewing the public’s trust in the ANC is through basic engagements with residents in their communities.
“Our future lies in returning to the basics: door-to-door work, street-based organising, and uniting our people behind tangible, measurable campaigns,” he said.
The ANC’s elective conferences are tough battlegrounds, but Itshegetseng believes he has received a mandate from branch members to contest for the deputy chairperson position.
“This is not a personal ambition, nor a project of ego. It is the result of deep consultation with comrades across zones, branches and allied structures who have expressed a desire for activist-led, movement-rooted leadership.
“I availed myself late in the campaign because I took time to think, to reflect and to listen. I am responding to a calling — not to command from above, but to serve from below,” he said.
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‘Abuse of drugs and alcohol’ in ANC meetings, structures
Itshegetseng said he would like to make some practical changes should he get into the region’s top structure.
“I will focus on organisational discipline, political education, service mobilisation and public legitimacy,” he said.
He said he will declare war on the abuse of drugs and alcohol – especially inside ANC meetings and structures – and end the culture of WhatsApp insults and fake news that misrepresent the ANC to the public.
“I would like to restore the alliance hegemony by reducing public spats with partners and holding structured, issue-based zonal and regional engagements.
“I would also like to strengthen the ANC’s relationship with organised business, faith-based organisations, and civil society — especially through quarterly meetings to solve local crises collectively,” he said.
Despite losing public confidence and predictions from analysts about the bleak future the ANC faces, Itshegetseng said this is the party that can save Johannesburg.
“I believe in the ANC not as a brand, but as a revolutionary movement.
“The challenges are many, but this is not the time to run — it is the time to fight for the soul of our movement. Leadership is not about comfort. It is about confronting storms, sacrificing privilege, and standing firm in defence of the people and the organisation that represents their hopes of our people,” he said.
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