In what was a provincial elective conference that passed with lackluster punditry, the ANC top five executive leaders in the Northern Cape were re-elected to their positions unopposed. At the African National Congress’s (ANC) tenth provincial conference on Tuesday (22 April) Dr Zamani Saul was reinstated as the provincial Chairperson for a third consecutive term.
Amid much-publicised in-fighting largely as a consequence of the intraparty CR17 vs NDZ factionalism, Saul first ascended to the position in 2017, again in 2021, returning this year unopposed in what some have suggested as either (1) his being proficient at relegating his enemies to feed on wild honey and locusts in the political wilderness; (2) an indication that the CR17 brigade continue to call the shots.
Despite attempts at downplaying the latter sentiment, Saul himself warned that there were risks between potential party disunity and reports of Deputy President Paul Mashatile’s alleged shooting because much of the party faithful were drawn in to infer that the incident supposedly had to do with the party’s upcoming 2027 national conference. With the rifts clearly etched back in 2017, Saul, – who’d hedged his bets with Ramaphosa’s ‘new dawn’ – would emerge triumphant over then-Premier Sylvia Lucas, the last time he would ever find his dominance in the province challenged.
Those power battles, which transpired in Colesberg, eParkeni’s backyard, are well-documented. Whilst Saul was making preparations for that year’s elective conference in his capacity as party provincial secretary, Lucas was reportedly initiating a last ditch cabinet reshuffle ostensibly to purge it of his supporters. At their crescendo, the differences would lead to a march on Luthuli House, result in what is largely considered a peaceble province suddenly at loggerheads with itself and – in an unexpected twist – Lucas and her slate ultimately declining their nomination.
This year’s core wording of the conference theme thus came as a mimicry of the party humdrum: ‘The year of renewal.’ Amid internal dis/loyalties and differences of the past as well as dwindling electoral support, Saul’s ‘first imperative is to build unity.’ Indeed, it would appear that if not tangible unity, the NC province has edged closest to what has often continued to elude both their provincial and national counterparts: A united party or at least the illusion of one.
The post-Polokwane ANC has laid bare how conferences of this nature often mean a miasma of underhanded tactics, cadres trading blows and duffel bags stuffed with hard cash changing hands. They are usually a nasty affair of innuendo and certainly do not instill confidence of merit and upright leadership being the stairway to the throne. Generally they leave those who’ve been left out in the cold with bitter scores to settle and the immediacy of social media suggests disagreeing views and prowling trolls.
But for Saul and his executive: Deputy Provincial Chairperson Bentley Vaas, Provincial Secretary Deshi Ngxanga, Deputy Provincial Secretary Maruping Lekwene and Provincial Treasurer Fufe Makatong, they’ll view the re-election as a major vote of confidence as well as their mandate to attend to the province’s problems. Amongst their immediate goals were to consolidate the ANC in the province with the hope of effectively tackling the grassroots issues facing the constituency.
Amongst his key focus areas were: economic growth, attracting investor confidence, strengthening international partnerships, strengthening oversight and accountability as well as ensuring service delivery.
In the bigger scheme, however, these elective conferences are a preface to what the future of the ANC might look like. Ramaphosa’s – holds one school of thought ‘thuma mina’ (send me) campaign was less a clarion call to effectively honouring the prescriptions of the Mass Democratic Revolution than being the cunning silver tongue who would ensure that the baton was passed on to a more palatable figure than his predecessor or any of his acolytes. That is, the sort of measured guy who could appeal to the sensibilities of the comrades without spooking capital and preferred the sort of decorum that wouldn’t drill on the hot topics of restitution and such.
As demonstrated at the sunset of Jacob Zuma’s tenure, premiers hold significant sway in the power and numbers games. For a time, uMsholozi could count on his troika in the Premiers League (Supra Mahumapelo in the North West, Ace Magashule in Free State and Mpumalanga’s David ‘DD’ Mabuza) to have his back until the astute Mabuza chose to plunge a knife into it instead. That left the League severely weakened before being eventually demoted to personae non grata as Ramaphosa began shuffling opponents to obscure portfolios and turning a blind eye when law enforcement started knocking on the doors of those with smallanyana skeletons in their closet.
With Zuma having jumped ship and a few of his staunch supporters following him out the door, it may well be that those who still pray at the altar of Ramaphoria may well represent the future of the ANC. Once a close Zuma ally, Mashatile is dogged by suspicions of corruption and even though he’s deputy president is seemingly being given a wide berth by the main ous. So much so that his recent claims of an attempt on his life have hardly raised the sort of alarm one would expect to follow such an incident on the nation’s Number 2 Citizen. It thus wouldn’t come as a surprise to find Saul, from dustbowl Petrusville ascending to the big leagues of power. All that the people of the Northern Cape can hope for is that he’ll at least have left the province in a more prosperous and functional state before he gets there.