In a pointed critique at the January 8 celebrations, alliance partners express dissatisfaction with the ANC’s failure to address issues plaguing municipalities and internal divisions, calling for decisive action.
Alliance partners of the ANC took aim at the national executive committee during the party’s 112th-anniversary celebration at the Mbombela stadium in Mpumalanga. The event drew more than 70,000 attendees, with President Cyril Ramaphosa delivering the address.
Criticism centered on the ANC’s alleged neglect in tackling the non-payment of workers in certain municipalities and concerns about individuals causing division within the party. The discontent comes at a crucial time for the ANC, facing its most challenging electoral contest in three decades.
Cosatu President Zingiswa Losi initiated the critique, urging President Ramaphosa to address the financial crisis in 36 municipalities that are failing to pay their workers. She emphasized the need for the ANC and its allies to collaborate in resolving alliance issues rather than resorting to legal battles.
“We want you (Ramaphosa) to take decisive action on the 36 municipalities that have run out of money and are not paying their workers…The government owes workers, and they must be paid what is due to them,” Losi asserted.
Following Losi, SA Communist Party General Secretary Solly Mapaila criticized the government for leaning towards monopoly capital and called for a decisive response from the ANC. Mapaila also criticized the NEC for its perceived inaction regarding former President Jacob Zuma’s open support for the newly-formed uMkhonto weSizwe party.
“This revolution can no longer be compromised. The ANC must respond decisively because they have been failed by the monopoly capital system,” Mapaila declared, adding, “Whoever goes against the revolution must be dealt with decisively.”
The alliance partners’ remarks suggest growing discontent within the ANC, raising questions about the party’s ability to address internal challenges and present a united front in the upcoming elections.