Ramaphosa's fitness to lead ANC renewal questioned

In a recent interview with Sunday World Engage, Solly Mapaila, the general secretary of the South African Communist Party (SACP), reiterated his long-standing concerns about President Cyril Ramaphosa’s suitability to spearhead the African National Congress (ANC) renewal project. Describing Ramaphosa as “scandal contaminated,” Mapaila pointed to the recent Phala Phala panel report, which indicated prima facie evidence of wrongdoing related to the alleged theft of cash from the president’s Limpopo farm, as a significant blemish on the president’s integrity.

Mapaila emphasized the strategic reasons for the SACP's continued alliance with the ANC, asserting the need to protect the party from being entirely influenced by imperialist and neo-liberal agendas. "The ANC elects its own leaders, and my criticism in 2022 highlighted the inability of any of the contending leaders to embody the symbol of renewal," he stated. He expressed concern that the president’s scandals disqualified him from representing any genuine sense of renewal within the party.

For Mapaila, a leader tasked with driving an ethical and value-based renewal project must possess moral integrity and a commitment to the principles of the national democratic revolution (NDR). He called for Ramaphosa to distance himself from “reactionary forces,” particularly the Democratic Alliance (DA), and to focus on the NDR’s core pillars, which include anti-imperialism, anti-oppression, and poverty alleviation.

Critiquing the government of national unity (GNU), which he labels a “neo-liberal coalition government,” Mapaila suggested that all ANC leaders who contested for leadership at the Nasrec conference were equally questionable. He lamented their failure to commit to a distinct renewal project, instead opting for vague discussions about renewal without addressing its practical implications.

Mapaila expressed frustration with the current ANC leadership, accusing them of undermining the long-standing call for the reconfiguration of the alliance. He noted that instead of pursuing meaningful changes within the party, the ANC has allied itself with the DA, further delaying necessary reforms.

He reminded listeners that the debate over the reconfiguration of the alliance, initiated during the Polokwane conference in 2007, was ostensibly settled in 2019 with an agreement endorsed by the highest decision-making bodies of the alliance. However, Mapaila criticized the new generation of ANC leaders for sidelining this foundational document in favor of a revised framework, which he claimed misrepresented the SACP's position.

As tensions within the ANC and its alliances continue to simmer, Mapaila’s comments serve as a clarion call for introspection and a reevaluation of leadership principles aimed at restoring integrity and purpose to the ANC’s renewal efforts.