When a liberation movement forgets its memory: Jay Naidoo

Key topics:Liberation movements’ decline when humility, discipline and integrity fadeANC’s NGC failures: unpaid staff, sidelined corruption debate, alliance fracturesPath to renewal: ethical leadership, truth-telling, youth inclusion and restored public trustSign up for your early morning brew of the BizNews Insider to keep you up to speed with the content that matters. The newsletter will land in your inbox at 5:30am weekdays. Register here.Support South Africa’s bastion of independent journalism, offering balanced insights on investments, business, and the political economy, by joining BizNews Premium. Register here.If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here..By Jay Naidoo.There is a rhythm to liberation movements. They rise in moments of great moral clarity when a nation’s soul is wounded, when injustice becomes unbearable, when ordinary people step beyond their own fear and discover a collective courage they did not know they possessed. These movements awaken the conscience of a nation. They carry memory. They carry sacrifice. They carry purpose.But history also holds the other side of the rhythm. Movements that were once guardians of dignity can drift into comfort and complacency. The values that once grounded them begin to fade. The moral fibre that held them together slowly loosens. And if they lose the humility that shaped their early journey, they begin to decline long before they fall.South Africa’s African National Congress stands inside this rhythm now, at a crossroads between renewal and irrelevance. And in truth, it is not alone. Across our continent, liberation movements that once carried the hopes of millions now face the same reckoning. Some have reinvented themselves with discipline and integrity. Others have succumbed to corruption, authoritarian reflexes, and the fear of losing power. History is unkind to movements that forget their origins, and even harsher on those that betray their own memory.As an elder who lived through our struggle, I speak not with judgment but with memory. I have seen the ANC at its best: disciplined, principled, united by a moral purpose that transcended politics. I have seen leaders who lived simply, who sacrificed without complaint, who understood that power was not a reward but a responsibility. In prison, in exile, in underground cells, this movement held onto its integrity, because integrity was the only currency that mattered.It is painful to witness how far we have drifted from those roots.The ANC’s National General Council, which is in session, was announced as a moment of reflection and renewal. Resolutions were proposed. Speeches were made. Language was crafted to signal unity and purpose. But symbols often speak more honestly than speeches, and the most striking symbol was that under the slogan of party unity the critical challenges of corruption and the role of ANC leaders in this was sidelined. As the gathering opened, ANC staff, the workers who keep the movement functioning stood in protest over unpaid salaries.For months they have waited, uncertain, frustrated, fearful of a bleak Christmas. It is a moment that would have been unimaginable in the era when the movement’s ethos was sacrifice, not privilege. A liberation movement that once cared for its members even in exile now struggles to pay its own employees while claiming to lead a nation.This is not just a financial crisis. It is a moral warning.Inside the NGC, debates unfolded over the National Democratic Revolution, organisational renewal, and political education. But the country outside the conference hall witnesses a different reality:Water systems failing.Electricity supply collapsing.Municipalities decaying.Crime infiltrating government structures.Criminal networks thriving in the vacuum of ethical leadership.Millions of young people sitting idle, feeling unseen and abandoned.The party may speak of renewal, but the public sees retreat.The fracture within the Tripartite Alliance, sharpened by the rejection of the South African Communist Party’s dual-membership proposal reveals deeper uncertainties. Relationships forged in struggle are now strained by mistrust and political manoeuvring. Alliance partners question whether they still share a common purpose. The internal battles consume attention while the country’s fabric unravels.Perhaps the clearest verdict comes not from opposing parties, but from the people themselves. The rise of the non-vote especially among young South Africans is the most powerful political act in our democracy today. Most of the youngest generation chose silence over participation. This is not apathy; it is a withdrawal of consent. It is a statement that the political system no longer represents them, no longer inspires them, no longer feels like theirs.A democracy may function legally with low participation, but it cannot survive morally. Legitimacy is not built on ballots alone. It is built on trust and trust is earned through service.For the ANC, the path to renewal does not begin with the resolutions of an NGC. It begins with truth. It begins with an honest reckoning of how far the movement has drifted from its founding ethos. It begins with understanding the pain of communities that feel forgotten. It begins with acknowledging the criminal capture that has corroded parts of the state and parts of the party. It begins with humility, the quality that once distinguished the ANC from its oppressors.If the ANC wishes to rediscover its purpose, it must return to the discipline of service. It must choose leaders whose lives reflect integrity, not entitlement. It must remove those who steal, no matter their faction. It must protect whistleblowers and truth-tellers. It must place the youth at the centre of national purpose and not at the margins of political theatre.Liberation was never intended to be a single moment in history. It was meant to be a lifelong responsibility, a continuous act of building, protecting, and advancing justice. The work of creating a fair society does not end with political victory. It deepens. It becomes more demanding as the comforts of power grow more tempting.The ANC delivered South Africa’s first miracle: a peaceful transition from apartheid to democracy. It offered the world a lesson in courage, forgiveness, and visionary leadership. But the second miracle, the renewal of trust and hope, is proving far more difficult. And yet it is the miracle we need most.South Africa is not lost. Our people remain resilient, creative, and courageous. Our potential remains vast. Communities across the country continue to organise, rebuild, and imagine a better future. The nation is not waiting for leaders to save it. It is waiting for leaders who are willing to serve it.The window for renewal is narrowing.But it is not closed.If the ANC listens truly listens and embraces humility, discipline, and ethical leadership, it can still contribute meaningfully to the next chapter of our democracy. If it does not, history will move forward without it. Movements that forget their memory do not survive.The crossroads is here.The choice belongs to those who lead.And the future, as it always has, belongs to those who serve.

When a liberation movement forgets its memory: Jay Naidoo

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