The African National Congress (ANC) Veterans League says the ANC coalitions with other parties must have meaning and not be about access to power at all cost.
This came out at its media briefing in Johannesburg on Monday following the conclusion of its three-day national conference at the weekend.
Party elders say coalition governments must be about service delivery to the poor.
The ANC has held all three conferences of its leagues in 30 days. The Veterans League says they pledged to be a resource tool for the governing party as it grapples to restore its image from ill-discipline and corruption.
ANCVL president Dr Snuki Zikalala says their main task is to help in developing a cadre of the ANC befitting the stature of an over 110-year old organisation.
Zikalala says, “Time and again delegates called on the ANC to be a disciplined and coherent organisation, which is free from corruption and political violence. They committed themselves to be a resource for the organisation especially for cadre development and political education. The new NEC of the Veterans league will gather to put in place our internal structures and develop a programme of action for the next five years to implement our resolutions of the conference.”
However, the elephant in the room was the dysfunctional municipalities under the ANC rule which party veterans believe could be used as a yardstick of whom to vote for in the 2024 elections.
Ethical perspective
The ANC Veterans League Deputy President Dr Mavuso Msimanga believes that the ANC should only enter into coalition arrangements with parties that have comparable policies.
Msimang says, “We took a position from an ethical perspective that coalitions must have a meaning, they must not be a means to power at all cost. There must be a basis for coming together with another party in the event that you don’t cross the 50% line. So if any structure of the ANC goes into a coalition that does not conform to what the policy says then we have to intervene immediately and say this is not in line with what the ANC has agreed to do.”
ANCVL Deputy Secretary General Connie September says in fact, they are the mastermind of the much talked-about renewal of the ANC.
September says, “I just want to take the issue of renewal when you say are you being listened to. It’s a pity that comrade Wally Serote is not here. but it is the Veterans League that drove the whole process around renewal, and that is now accepted in the ANC. There now are resolution after resolution that have been adopted and proposals have been put forward for constitutional amendments in the ANC dealing with the issue of no one with a criminal record, maybe in the ANC especially at the leadership level and that was pushed very hard by the Veterans League itself.”
They have thanked President Cyril Ramaphosa for reaffirming their right to call anyone in the ANC to order regardless of their position in the spirit of returning the governing party to its glory days .
VIDEO: Ramaphosa says veterans have a right to criticise the ANC:
