ANC’s renewal is empty rhetoric: Katzenellenbogen

Key topics.Lack of real renewal in the ANCInternal struggles and declining influenceCommitment to failed policies.Sign 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..The seventh BizNews Conference, BNC#7, is to be held in Hermanus from March 11 to 13, 2025. The 2025 BizNews Conference is designed to provide an excellent opportunity for members of the BizNews community to interact directly with the keynote speakers, old (and new) friends from previous BNC events – and to interact with members of the BizNews team. Register for BNC#7 here..If you prefer WhatsApp for updates, sign up to the BizNews channel here.By Jonathan Katzenellenbogen*.The ANC is desperately trying to get across the idea that since it lost its majority at last year's election, it is on a path of renewal and cleansing. Yet its rhetoric and ideas are much the same as they have been for many decades, and there are no signs of any form of renewal..The party is steeped in its revolutionary ideology and rhetoric, and the messianic idea that a National Democratic Revolution which will bring prosperity and a new society is on the way. It has trapped itself in the rhetoric and culture of a revolutionary party and is unable to come up with the ideas to become a modern social democratic party free of a patronage network..As the ANC will continue to play a large role, an ANC that does not reform means the country will remain trapped in a low-growth, high-unemployment trap. It is likely that the ANC will dominate any coalition government for the foreseeable future, even if it does not have a majority. It still controls most of what the state does, and it has a large patronage network..The ANC's annual January 8th statement to commemorate its founding on this date in 1912 is the party's chance to reveal its state of mind and plans and motivate its followers..In the statement released last week, the ANC declares 2025 to be the year of renewal. This is an unconvincing document as it shows the ANC to be in a time warp of 40 years ago. There are no new ideas for economic growth and renewal. It also shows a party that is not deterred from pursuing failed and destructive policies..Read more: Andrew Kenny: After 30 years in power, verdict is obvious – Where ANC wins, SA loses .The January 8th statement speaks at length of the ANC's role in fighting colonialism, mobilising the working class and the push toward the National Democratic Revolution, without a hint of the need for a rethink. .Political parties that want to renew themselves cannot allow themselves to be caught in a time warp, even if it is of the liberation era. Modern parties focus on what they can do for the country now, rather than what they think of as a glorious past..Significantly, the January 8th statement admits to the enormous failure at last year's elections, where the ANC only received 40 percent of the vote and lost its majority. It says the election results point to an existential crisis for the party..The causes of the party's electoral disaster include the poor state of the economy, poor basic services and, "deficiencies of capable, ethical and responsive governance, and the ANC's organisational weaknesses and damaged brand," the statement says..That is a candid admission, but the issues cannot really be addressed without the need for a massive revamp of the party. It is trying to fix its broken branches, introduce a compulsory course on ethics and integrity, and ensure better screening of new members to rid the party of criminals. In the past it has promised similar things..And it wants to "build a South Africa that belongs to all through National Dialogue." The holding of a "National Dialogue" was agreed to by the nine parties that joined the GNU last year. It is an undefined process, but if the ANC is keen on the idea, it is probably because it will be in charge and can set the agenda..The eight other parties that are also part of the GNU had best be very careful that the ANC does not run away with the process, by appointing "the people" to attend and speak at the National Dialogue..Last year it was the power crisis that the party set out to solve. With this now apparently solved, this year the ANC is pushing the government to address the national water crisis. Both these crises were self-inflicted due to ANC mismanagement. It also wants to speed up growth, create jobs and fight crime and corruption. But it is not willing to privatise failing state enterprises and remains committed to even greater empowerment, which much of the private sector is now resisting on practical grounds..And then there is the commitment in the Statement to recently-passed National Democratic Revolution legislation: the Employment Equity Amendment Act, the Basic Education Laws Amendment Act, and the National Health Insurance. All undermine the private sector, diminish investor confidence, and will fail to bring about improved service delivery and economic growth..As its electoral strength declines, a lot could rapidly change for the party. There could be new heated rivalries over the diminishing number of positions and the associated spoils of office. In decline, party rivalries might become more intense, raising the chance of further splits and breakaways. Systems of proportional representation, as we have in SA, make parties more prone to breakaways and splits, as they can enjoy at least minimal electoral success..With internal strife and breakaways, the ANC's words and commitment will be weakened. .While President Cyril Ramaphosa says he is fully committed to the GNU, the rival ANC faction of the South African Communist Party and populists are against any alliance with the DA. To try and gain internal acceptance of the GNU across the party, the Statement speaks of the arrangement as "tactical" and a temporary expedient. That is something those who have had Lenin drummed into them in party catechisms will fully understand. Sometimes, it is necessary to reach deals with bourgeois forces to stay in power. That must cast a degree of doubt on the longer-term commitment of the ANC to such arrangements that involve the DA..Read more: 🔒 Ramaphosa's leadership tested as GNU struggles to deliver on renewed optimism: Justice Malala.The faction with which the Deputy President Paul Mashatile, the Gauteng Premier Panyaza Lesufi, and the Communist Party are associated might be opposing the GNU on ideological grounds or because these people might be positioning themselves in the race to succeed Ramaphosa. The battle is getting increasingly messy..The anti-Ramaphosa forces have managed to kick the DA out of coalition arrangements in Johannesburg and other Gauteng metros. And they have not extended a deal to the DA in the province itself. In Gauteng, the ANC only got 35 percent of the vote, but refused to do a deal with the DA which gained 27 percent of the vote in the province. That hardly accords with the spirit of the GNU, but Ramaphosa has not been able to force the issue..Faced with an internal fight of this magnitude, which involves big ideological issues, it is difficult for the ANC to revamp and modernise. Even if he wanted to, it would be difficult for Ramaphosa to force through a full revamp of the party, as it just might involve ridding the ANC of those under judicial scrutiny. .The key to keeping the party together is to ensure sufficient power to continue with patronage and no real revamps. That is the real glue of politics for the ANC. And that is why the politics do not favour an ANC renewal. .Read also: .🔒 John Matisonn: ANC, the wounded buffalo, faces a challenging 2025Fire the GNU – Rob Hersov, Gerhard Papenfus explain why SA (still) isn't workingPaul Harris to Aussie pal Jeff – "No need for you to stress about SA. We're OK.".*Jonathan Katzenellenbogen is a Johannesburg-based freelance journalist. .*This article was originally published by Daily Friend and has been republished with permission.

ANC’s renewal is empty rhetoric: Katzenellenbogen

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