The ANC brings together forces that are diametrically opposed, says president Cyril Ramaphosa, and the challenge is to get them all singing from the same hymn book.
The challenge was nowhere more apparent than at the weekend national executive committee (NEC) meeting, which agreed that the NEC needed to convene another gathering specifically to focus on forging unity.
Ramaphosa has, deservedly, won largely glowing report cards for his first 100 days in office, but as the NEC meeting showed, he has yet to consolidate his control of the ruling party.
The meeting was unable to reach consensus on a range of issues, from a replacement for Supra Mahumapelo as premier of North West to land restitution and the future of the SA Reserve Bank.Ramaphosa, speaking to editors, conceded that bringing together the leaders elected at Nasrec in December last year, who represent rival factions, was “never going to be easy” but it is important to “find one another and forge unity”.
Of the ANC top six elected in December, two are firmly in the camp aligned with former president Jacob Zuma – secretary-general Ace Magashule and his deputy Jessie Duarte. They backed Ramaphosa’s opponent for the ANC presidency, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.
Magashule – now the public face of the party – is under a cloud of suspicion over his role in Gupta-led state capture shenanigans, while Ramaphosa, who campaigned on an anti-corruption platform, never missed a chance to denounce state capture.
This conflict within the top six seems likely to hobble Ramaphosa in his quest to reform and renew both the party and the state.
“It was never going to be easy to bring [together] strands of people diametrically opposed… but what unites us is the ANC,” Ramaphosa told editors. “Sometimes it may seem people are pulling in different directions – it takes time, unity is not a one-day event, it’s a process.”
Ramaphosa said, however, that he had been given a clear mandate to do his work in government.
Government’s move to place North West province under administration showed it could take action, despite prevarication in the ANC.
Ramaphosa said “dynamics” were at work that needed to be “managed”, and the North West dynamics are particularly challenging with Mahumapelo – who was in the Zuma camp with Magashule – flexing his muscles as party provincial chair.
The ANC allowed him to save face in the midst of widespread protests by taking “early retirement” as premier, an option that previously did not exist for the post.
Ramaphosa was always going to be tripped up by the mixed bag of leaders elected alongside him at Nasrec. Opposing forces within the NEC mean the structure is hamstrung, as was evident at the weekend meeting in its deliberations not only on North West but also on land and nationalisation of the Reserve Bank.
The ANC land “summit” held two weeks ago remains a work in progress, and the ANC is now moving to consult traditional leaders.
The contentious resolution on nationalising the Bank – agreed at the Nasrec conference – will also now be subjected to a process of “dialogue with stakeholders”. It remains unclear whether the Zuma-aligned faction, which pushed for this resolution in December, wants to simply change the ownership of the Bank or tamper with its mandate.
Ramaphosa made it clear during his discussion with editors that the independence of the Bank is a constitutional provision that remains sacrosanct.
Asked about conflicting pronouncements from Magashule and other ANC leaders on crucial aspects of the economy, Ramaphosa said he wanted them to “sing from the same hymn book” but the party is a “broad church” so achieving this would be a process.
Magashule, for example, told media after the NEC meeting that he could not say if the party would change the ownership or mandate of the Bank. He said only that the party needed to consult and give itself time to decide. He could not give details or timelines for this process.
Ramaphosa maintains the Bank must remain independent, despite a resolution at Nasrec that its status as privately owned should end and that the state should take it over.
The Bank is one of only a few central banks worldwide that is privately owned.
In terms of the constitution, it is independent of government and the private shareholders have no say over monetary policy.
“These things happen,” Ramaphosa said, referring to the contradictory views expressed by his colleagues. “We want to minimise this as much as we can … In the end I guess we have to deal with them and put the record straight.”
Ramaphosa said he was party to crafting the clause in the constitution relating to the Bank and that it remained an “unassailable part of the constitution”.
“Government should focus on the fiscal side and trust the Bank to manage the protection and efficacy of the currency,” the president said.
This piece was first published in Financial Mail..