The African National Congress (ANC) president Cyril Ramaphosa says that detractors who want to see the ANC go below 50% at the 2024 polls will not see their wish fulfilled.
Ramaphosa was speaking at the 2019 manifesto review wrap-up in Ekurhuleni on Friday.
The party’s president reflects on the ANC’s manifesto review process three months after it initially kicked off. Despite holding a mirror up to itself on a number of socio-economic challenges in the country, creating disillusionment and discontent, the ANC remains firm that it will not dip below 50% in the 2024 general elections.
“To our detractors who think that the ANC is not going to perform well, who actually wish we should go below 50% – I want to say that those wishes are not going to be fulfilled. Those dreams are not going to happen,” says Ramaphosa.
The president delivers a wrap of the party’s review process of its 2019 manifesto in Alberton, Ekurhuleni, to scores of ANC supporters.
Seeking to convince them of the party’s achievements, Ramaphosa went on to address other claims made by what he calls the ANC’s detractors.
“They have resorted to distortions of facts and lies, the biggest being that nothing has happened since 1994 and that apartheid was even better than what we are going through now and we all know that is a blatant lie…(lies).”
‘Setbacks and challenges’
As the quality of life in South Africa has seemingly worsened with rolling blackouts, porous borders and high unemployment levels to name a few, the ANC has been the subject of much criticism.
The party has seemingly chosen to focus on the country’s gains since the dawn of democracy leading up to the 2024 general elections.
“Stating these successes is not a denial of the fact that there have not been setbacks and challenges, of course we have had setbacks and challenges, those who do not have setbacks and challenges are those who sit on the sidelines and criticize. Arm-chair critics are those who have never gotten into the arena where they have to do things for our people, they sit there…criticize the ANC but when it comes to doing, we are the ones who are doing things and changing the lives of our people,” Ramaphosa adds.
The president has also engaged the media on issues beyond the party. He says he was confident the country is on the right track. The party will kick off the New Year with its January 8 Statement expected to be held in the Mpumalanga.
Video: ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa engages the media following ANC 2019 Manifesto Review
