ANC at 110: Ramaphosa puts focus on renewal of party

Ramaphosa delivered the January 8 statement to some 2000 members in Polokwane as part of the party’s 110th birthday celebrations.

He called on members to reflect on the myriad of problems facing the ANC.

“We must be forthright in recognising, and deal decisively with, the reality that ANC structures are in a poor state,” he said.

“Many of them are focused on internal organisational conflicts, factionalism and furthering the self-interest of individual leaders rather than the aspirations of communities they are meant to serve.

“Consequently, political formations with divergent ideologies and agendas have found common cause in an effort to defeat the ANC and, more substantively, to disrupt pro-poor programmes of social and economic transformation.”

Ramaphosa admitted the current state of the organisation led to its slump at the polls during last year’s local government elections.

“While the ANC received a clear mandate to govern in the overwhelming majority of municipalities, our overall share of the national vote fell below 50% for the first time since the advent of democracy in elections characterised by very low voter turn-out.

“Many citizens demonstrated their dissatisfaction with the ANC and its performance by staying away from the polls.

“The movement must, therefore, undergo a fundamental and lasting process of renewal and rebuilding if it is to remain the effective and trusted agent of change on whose behalf Comrade Oliver Tambo was speaking when he delivered the January 8th statement in 1972,” added Ramaphosa.