ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has taken aim at “party stalwarts” who are critical of the current leadership of the former liberation movement, particularly President Cyril Ramaphosa.
Speaking during a press briefing at the party head office—Luthuli House—on Tuesday, Mbalula named Tokyo Sexwale while he also took an unveiled swipe at former ANC President Thabo Mbeki.
Sexwale and Mbeki have been critical of the ANC’s current leadership under Ramaphosa.
The former president has been particularly consistent on an issue that personally affects Ramaphosa—the theft of foreign currency from the incumbent’s Phala Phala game farm.
ANC stalwarts called to order
As recently as two days ago, Mbeki reiterated his stance that the ANC was wrong to use its numerical majority in parliament in the last administration to vote against the Section 89 independent panel report on Phala Phala.
“I had written to the leader of government business (deputy president Paul Mashatile) after they took a wrong decision in parliament, in my view, when they decided not to allow the process from that panel to go to this (impeachment) committee,” said Mbeki during an interview with SABC News on the sidelines of his annual Africa Day Lecture.
“That decision was wrong; they used the ANC majority to do a wrong thing. What the constitutional court has done is they have agreed with what I said two years ago, and they were correct.
“President Ramaphosa is a businessman, as he has said so himself; that is his business as a businessman; it has nothing to do with the ANC. I do not know why the ANC is preoccupied with the Phala Phala scandal, as it has nothing to do with them.
“The ANC must look at its own business, unless there are people in the ANC who are in partnership with business Ramaphosa.”
Mbalula dismissed that the Phala Phala scandal has anything to do with the ANC and said they have done nothing wrong but obeyed the law up to now.
He expressed disappointment at the views of “ANC stalwarts”, saying sometimes their criticism appears “oppositional”.
The ANC administration and operations boss said it was a cause for concern when stalwarts who are “bored” are making anti-ANC remarks on various media platforms.
Sexwale singled out
In this regard, he fingered former Gauteng premier Tokyo Sexwale, who recently shared his views on the SMWX podcast hosted by Sizwe Mpofu-Walsh.
“There are people who are bored; some of them are stalwarts. They are just bored at home; you call them, and they go to that chap (Mpofu junior) and make comments,” said Mbalula.
“They are disappointing because they are stalwarts. What they still want in active politics is anyone’s guess. They condemn us every day to the point of being oppositional to the ANC. To them, there is nothing good we are doing.
“It is not correct that everything they say cannot go unchallenged; we are very close to taking them on factually in the distortions they are making in polluting the public discourse,” Mbalula went on.
“They are ANC stalwarts, but this borders on both ill-discipline and eroding the movement’s cohesion. Tokyo (Sexwale) goes and talks about the succession debate, his preferences, and all of that. Who cares about that? He can come with that view next year when it’s open.”
Mbalula continued that it was “unfair on the ANC” for those who have led before to attack their successors.
“I wish to tell them, one by one, we are going to remind them who they are and what they did in this country. It will not be fair to them; when they were leading the ANC, they were given space.”
- ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula criticized senior ANC figures, notably Tokyo Sexwale and former President Thabo Mbeki, for their public criticism of current leadership under President Cyril Ramaphosa.
- Mbeki has been a consistent critic, especially regarding the Phala Phala farm foreign currency theft scandal and the ANC's parliamentary handling of the impeachment process.
- Mbalula defended the ANC's approach to the Phala Phala issue, stating the party has obeyed the law and distancing the scandal from the ANC’s core business.
- He expressed disappointment that long-standing ANC stalwarts appear to be oppositional and eroding party cohesion through negative public commentary.
- Mbalula warned that the party will challenge the misinformation spread by these stalwarts and emphasized that criticism should wait until official political processes, like the succession debate, are formally open.
ANC secretary-general Fikile
Sexwale and
As recently as two days ago,
“I had written to the leader of government business (deputy president Paul
“
“President Ramaphosa is a businessman, as he has said so himself; that is his business as a businessman; it has nothing to do with the ANC. I do not know why the ANC is preoccupied with the Phala Phala scandal, as it has nothing to do with them.
"
He expressed disappointment at the views of “ANC stalwarts", saying sometimes their criticism appears "oppositional".
In this regard, he fingered former
“
“
“It is not correct that everything they say cannot go unchallenged; we are very close to taking them on factually in the distortions they are making in polluting the public discourse,”
"
“I wish to tell them, one by one, we are going to remind them who they are and what they did in this country. It will not be fair to them; when they were leading the ANC, they were given space.”
