OPINION: Serving the people and not factional battles should be focus of ANC

The silly season is well and truly upon us. With just over five months to go before ballots are cast in the 2021 local government elections, the ruling party is battling inner turmoil. ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule has played a starring role in much of the political shenanigans that have dominated headlines of late, refusing to obey party orders to step aside pending the outcome of his criminal trial.

The axe has not only come down on the SG, but several other prominent leaders and members have suffered a similar fate. But Magashule has remained defiant. After being issued a letter of suspension last week, he turned the tables on his party in a bizarre move and instead suspended the president of the ANC and country, Cyril Ramaphosa.  

Magashule trended yet again at the weekend. He caused a stir when he logged into a virtual ANC national executive committee (NEC) meeting on Saturday and in a separate incident locked horns with Eastern Cape ANC chairperson and premier Oscar Mabuyane.

The SG came out guns blazing, alleging that money stolen from local councils had been deposited into Mabuyane’s account in an interview aired on the SABC on Friday. Mabuyane retaliated and on Saturday threatened legal action against Magashule for his assertions.  

For those on the sidelines, and even within the party, it has all made for some interesting viewing. Social media’s quasi political analysts have had a field day unpacking what these public spats mean for the party. It is evident that the divisions within the ruling party run deep. While all political parties have skeletons in their closets, the spotlight on the ANC as the governing party shines even brighter.

The political mudslinging and attempts at self-preservation within the ANC can only serve as distractions from fulfilling their mandate of serving the people of this country. South Africa is currently in an election and typically the attention shifts to what progress has been made and what challenges still loom large. But more than that, the country is desperately trying to rebuild itself from a pandemic that has devastated the economy. Thousands of jobs have been lost and businesses forced to shut its doors. Every day there are South Africans who go to bed hungry and live in squalid conditions. 

These are the issues that should be dominating the agenda and conversations in the ANC, not factional battles and the political survival of individuals.