ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula. Photo: Luba Lesolle/Gallo Images
ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula has lashed at Economic Freedom Fighters (EFF) leader Julius Malema and the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party’s leader Jacob Zuma, saying the ANC has not “sold out the people” describing the pair as displaying “ethno-nationalism, backwardness and inconsistency” in their own “betrayal of the people”.
The ANC’s 40% majority means it is leading the government of national unity (GNU) which is neither a sellout nor a “melting pot” of ideologies, Mbalula said.
He lambasted Malema for his remarks that the ANC is a “dying party” and said Zuma had brought “the questionable character” of Judge John Hlope to parliament to “spit in the face” of South Africa, while Zuma’s people had also demanded he be “treated like the Dalai Lama”.
Mbalula said the MK was leading a “so-called progressive coalition with others of their ilk yet all they represent is a pushback against the vision of a united, non-racial, democratic, non-sexist and prosperous” country.
Mbalula launched his attack on the party’s opponents while responding to questions during an ANC media briefing on Saturday in which he outlined and welcomed the programme of the 7th Administration as reflected in President Cyril Ramaphosa’s opening of Parliament address this week.
Mbalula said the ANC supported the administration’s programme which had adopted the six priorities outlined in the ANC’s manifesto.
“The ANC welcomes the immediate priorities identified by the President’s opening of Parliament address, which reflect the priorities identified in the ANC 2024 manifesto, to advance the building of a united, non-racial, non-sexist, democratic and prosperous South Africa,” Mbalula said.
“The three strategic priorities outlined by the President, respond to the most burning challenges facing our nation and its people.”
He said after 30 years of democracy, South Africa has made progress in building strong democratic institutions to meet basic needs, investing in people and transforming the economy. But the quality of basic services, the link between the people and government, crime and corruption, land and agrarian reforms and persistent and deep poverty, inequality and unemployment, remain a challenge which “requires urgent attention”.
“The national economy has stagnated in terms of economic expansion, economic transformation and inclusion, thus failing to produce the income and wealth distribution envisioned by the national democratic revolution. Persistent low rates of investment, deindustrialisation and relocation of industrial bases have all conspired to undermine the framework for sustainable employment creation in the country”, Mbalula said.
“These economic challenges have significantly hindered our progress towards achieving equitable and inclusive growth and development, the liberation of Africans in particular and black people in general, from political and economic bondage, uplifting the quality of life of all South Africans, especially the working class and poor”, he said.
He said all political parties had expressed consensus on the triple challenges of unemployment, poverty and inequality facing the country, during the parliamentary debate this week.
“Of course, given the ideological range represented in parliament, there will be disagreement represented in the colourful rhetoric and pretences we had yesterday, that some for their own survival and exposing their political bankruptcy, want to present the ANC as having sold out the people”, Mbalula said, referring to Malema’s and Hlope’s accusation in parliament that Ramaphosa had sold out the people.
“The ANC will speak for itself when their own ethno-nationalism, backwardness and inconsistency constitute the betrayal of the people, even during the sixth administration, they consistently voted with the party they now despise against progressive policies introduced by the African National Congress”, Mbalula said.
“On the other extreme of the spectrum of liberal conservatism there are those with us who cannot deny the moral and just cause of redress, as set out by the Constitution …and yet they continue to want to cling to their privileges, to deny universal health coverage to the majority and to prevent our schools from providing equal opportunities to all”, Mbalula said.
He said despite setbacks, the ANC was “unfaltering” in its mission to build a democratic society through “social and economic transformation”.
“It is for these reasons, having resolved on the option of a government of national unity as the least risky option, we ensured that the minimum program of the government of national unity and the seventh administration reflected the priorities of the ANC manifesto. All 10 parties who signed the statement of intent committed themselves to this minimum program,” Mbalula said.
These six priorities outlined in the ANC manifesto include to: drive inclusive growth and job creation, reduce poverty and tackle the high cost of living, build a capable, ethical and developmental state, invest in people by meeting basic needs, including investing in education and improving health outcomes and service delivery, defend democracy and advance freedom, and building a better Africa and world.
Mbalula said there should be no surprise that the government’s programme was in line with the ANC manifesto as it is leading the GNU with its 40% majority rather than being a “sell out” as claimed by Malema and Hlope. But there would still be dissent from within the GNU.
“The government of national unity is not a melting pot wherein everybody is going to agree with what we do. Do you think that the DA opposition to the Bela Bill as well as NHI is going to stop because they are in the government of national unity? But the fact of the matter is that we use the six million votes that we’ve got to proceed to implement these policies within the GNU,’ Mbalula said.
He said what they want through the GNU, which is the mandate of the people, is stability. The GNU is not cast in stone and if people want to leave they can, he said. This does not mean it will collapse.
He said members of the GNU “will want to make a point that they are not just passengers”.
“ANC with 40% still has got sway over key strategic government departments to realise its goals. So, it’s not a surprise that President Ramaphosa reads the ANC manifesto in the statement …Because GNU is led by the ANC,” Mbalula said.
He said similarly, it should not be a surprise if KZN Premier Thami Ntuli reads out the IFP’s manifesto as part of its programme for the province.
He said “others” such as the EFF and the MK had rejected the GNU because “they wanted a marriage”.
“We don’t have a marriage. What the EFF and Zuma want is a marriage which is not really defined. Worse off with Zuma. He was there. I saw him there yesterday, and they were demanding he must be recognised, like a Dalai Lama, and so on. We are not about that. We are about transforming the lives of the people for the better,” Mbalula said.
“They don’t debate the issues that the President put on the table and even argue for their case, but they are labellers and derogatory and attacking,” he said.
“Our allies are the Communist Party, Cosatu and Sanco. All these people who are here in Parliament, who are very colorful in their rhetoric, are not our friends. They decided to break the ANC and divide it. He (Zuma) decided to break us and reduce us below 40% and he doesn’t have a program of action of what he’s going to do …except sending a questionable judge to Parliament, a very questionable character, just to spit on the face of South Africa,” Mbalula said.
“He brings Hlope and even sends him to the JSC [Judicial Service Commission], just to show us that he’s got no respect for us, for constitutionalism. And then to spit on our face, he brings him to Parliament …to say, lead these people.”
“He doesn’t say I am happy as a democrat to participate in the discourse and to lead a party line because that party does not have a meaning except a grievance, and even when he speaks, he’s very angry,” he said.
Mbalula added that the party would have “robust and honest” reflections about what went wrong in the elections, and it would also engage with Communist Party general secretary Solly Mapaila who had criticised the party.
“We will perhaps need to interrogate what he means, that the ANC has got a dominant faction of neoliberalism, without suppressing his view. But what the party must understand is that the ANC is exercising its rights as an organisation,” he said.