ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula was so perturbed and later confronted Panyaza Lesufi, the party’s Gauteng chairperson for addressing a media conference while dressed in a T-shirt emblazoned with the words “Don’t Kill Chris Hani Again”.
Lesufi donned the T-shirt early this month while sharing the stage with Mbalula at Luthuli House over the breakdown of the government of provincial unity negotiations with the DA.
At the time, talk was rife of a cold war between the ANC provincial executive committee (PEC) and Luthuli House over which party to work with in Gauteng.
The provincial leadership is suspected to have preferred the EFF and MK against the national office’s already existing government of national unity centred around the DA.
“When I saw Panyaza wearing the T-shirt, I asked the meaning of that. Even in philosophical terms, I did not understand him properly. What does he mean by that? Who is he directing that to?” Mbalula said during a wide-ranging interview with the Sunday World Engage podcast, which is due to air today on our YouTube channel.
The firebrand former leader of the ANC Youth League did not hold back on his general view about the Gauteng PEC, led by Lesufi, which he believes is not a positive example for other provinces.
Lesufi, following the popular public discourse about the T-shirt, explained the meaning behind the message in a television interview.
“What Chris Hani stood for will always stand; we will defend it whatever it takes and whatever moment. Chris Hani will never die again.
“We embraced ourselves and said that regardless of the limitations of the [election] outcome, we will defend what Chris Hani stood for, and you go into negotiations and find other parties whose mission is to kill the ANC, which will never happen.
“As long as we still stand, as long as some of us still breathe, and as long as some of us are still members of the ANC, Chris Hani will never die again.”
Mbalula said although he was yet to do a deep dive on the state of organisation in the provinces, he was concerned by certain developments in Gauteng.
He said he had noted an element of factionalism in Gauteng and a general weakness of the leadership to engage with ANC structures effectively, which he said he was noting for his upcoming national tour of provinces starting next month.
“There are already a lot of things that I have seen that are problems for me. Comrades run ANC through Zoom meetings; they run ANC by not engaging structures where there are challenges and talking to them and understanding them; they run roughshod over structures imposing disciplinary processes to short-circuit easy organisational solutions, demoralising membership most of the time.
“They are dealing with only one aspect of local government: deployments. It is about who comes next in the public service of the local government and ‘how best can we master the plan to remove a mayor or a councillor’. Ngu mnike mnike (it is a give-and-take arrangement). So all those things must be curtailed and dealt with.”
Mbalula blamed the Gauteng PEC for fuelling the narrative they are defiant against Luthuli House, which he believes is not true. However, even if they wanted to defy the head office, it was impossible. “Out there, there is this notion that Gauteng defied national [leaders]. There is no such. Even if they were to attempt that, it is not possible; there is no province that can defy national.”
According to Mbalula, Gauteng leaders who are “young and energetic” must focus on channelling their energy towards building the ANC and cease engaging in “reckless communication” gymnastics.
He added that if Gauteng leaders want to learn anything, they must look to North West, which is the shining light for ANC provinces. “When I look at the impact of leadership, I look at North West. I worked with them, and I know the challenges they are facing there, but when I came back from there, it was clear that these comrades were doing something there that came to impress me, and I saw it in the [election] results in terms of work. That is how leadership
is judged.”
But a senior party leader said Mbalula’s criticism of Lesufi should be taken with a pinch of salt because it is motivated by his ambition to become ANC president in 2027 and he sees South Africa’s most industrious premier as his threat.
Lesufi is becoming popular among the structures which believe he possesses the qualities to lead the ANC in 2027, said the leader.” Unfortunately Mbalula is targeting the wrong guy because Panyaza is not interested in the position,” said the leader who is close to Lesufi.
