ANC will not split - Ramaphosa

It comes amid concerns by ratings agency Moody's that the ruling party was headed in that direction. 

Ramaphosa delivered the keynote address at the SACP's Moses Kotane Memorial Lecture in Rustenburg.  

He had met with Moody's on Friday, who indicated they believed there there were signs the ANC would split. 

"A little bit angrily, I said that the ANC will not split. It will not split, because the ANC has a responsibility to unite the people of our country. It also has its own responsibility to remain united," Ramaphosa said. 

Moody's is the only agency which has not downgraded South Africa to junk status.

Fitch and Standard & Poor downgraded the country shortly after President Jacob Zuma's controversial midnight Cabinet reshuffle. 

Meanwhile, the SACP in the North West has endorsed Ramaphosa, as the succession race hots up ahead of the ANC's national conference in December. 

Ramaphosa believes the ruling party should use the upcoming conference to rebrand and ensure it continues to lead the country.

The SACP's Solly Mapaila believes corruption, corporate capture of the state and the organisation as well as factionalism are at the core of the challenges the revolution faces.