‘Men have messed up’: Calls for women to take up ANC leadership positions

As the ANC faces the strongest challenge yet for the top leadership position, maybe it is time for women to take the levers of power and heal the nation, because “men have messed up”, says a political and heritage expert.

And Dr George Tsibani believes a good place to start would be to replace President Cyril Ramaphosa with former deputy president and ex-United Nations Women chief Dr Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka.

Current deputy president David Mabuza should be replaced by Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.

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His suggestions came after confirmation yesterday that Dlamini-Zuma is throwing her hat into the ring for ANC president at the party’s elective conference at the end of the year.

The Sunday Times reported Dlamini-Zuma was approached by some ANC branches to stand for president, and she had agreed. Dlamini-Zuma is not the only woman contender for the top position.

She goes up against Tourism Minister Lindiwe Sisulu. However, the party’s Women’s League is yet to pick a side between the two. Also in the running is ANC NEC member and Human Settlements Minister Mmamoloko Kubayi.

She has said 2022 must be the watershed year when women have a 50% representation in the ANC top six.

Tsibani, who is also a historian and author, as well as senior research associate at the Imbumba yamaNyama Royal Council, did not include Nelson Mandela or Thabo Mbeki in his list of men who had “messed up” the country.

He said its time for women to head the ANC and the country.

“It is about resetting, rethinking and renewal with women heading the presidency,” he said.

Either Dlamini-Zuma or Mlambo-Ngcuka could be president, he said, because both have global appeal and experience which would please the markets and the international community.

He cited Dlamini-Zuma’s international leadership foot prints, having been minister of foreign affairs under Mbeki and led World Health Organisation programmes, as well as being African Union (AU) Commission chair in developing the AU Agenda 2063.

“She excelled as minister in all her previous portfolios using meritocracy,” Tsibani said.

“She now leads the DDM [District Development Model] to refocus local government into smart cities.”

He said Mlambo-Ngcuka had been deputy president before and therefore knew the ropes.

“She represented Africa well as head of the United Nations Women and now her new tasks at the African Union.

“She has a global understand ing and that is what is needed in a leader,” he said.

Tsibani suggested a “breast-feeding model” of leadership, using a metaphor to describe the role the women could play to heal the nation, as a mother’s milk had nutrients that healed child.

“Both women will be good presidential candidates to heal our nation and breastfeed as mother our children and restore lost dignity.

“They must approach December 2022 and the 2024 general election as unity of the oppressed by defying male chauvinism across races,” he said.

He suggested that while both Kubayi and Minister of Justice and Correctional Services Ronald Lamola had put their names in the hat for deputy president at the ANC’s 55th national conference in December, the two were still too young for the position.

He said instead they should be understudies to Mlambo-Ngcuka and Dlamini-Zuma so they could take over from them in future.

“I do believe they can mentor and coach potential candidates like Lamola and Kubayi post2024,” he said.

“Right now the global markets need Mlambo-Ngcuka and Dlamini-Zuma’s touch and a woman’s voice in leadership.

“This is coincidental with UK Prime Minister Liz Truss.”

They must talk to each other and decide who should be president and who should be deputy. Tsibani offered to facilitate the negotiations.

In 2017 Dlamini-Zuma contested the position of ANC president against Ramaphosa.

She lost to Ramaphosa, but later accepted a post in his Cabinet.

– ericn@citizen.co.za

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