MANYANE MANYANE and LOYISO SIDIMBA
ANC national executive committee (NEC) member Supra Mahumapelo has suggested that the party needs to review the Freedom Charter in order to stay relevant and shape its future.
Mahumapelo, chairperson of National Assembly’s portfolio committee on international affairs and cooperation, suggested these changes ahead of this year’s general elections which saw the ANC losing its outright majority for the first time since ascending to power in 1994.
This was after the party captured only 40.18% of the vote.
This marks a continued decline after reaching its peak in 2004, with the party securing just 159 of the 400 available seats in the National Assembly - opening the way for a coalition government.
Soon following the historic elections, the ANC announced its intention to form a government of national unity, following extensive discussions with the DA and eight other opposition parties.
However, Mahumapelo believed the ANC needed to assess whether the party and its structures from national to branch remain relevant in terms of how they were structured after 30 of democracy.
The former North West premier suggested this in a paper titled, Another Perspective on ANC Repositioning and Renewal, on his perspective on ANC repositioning and renewal draft in 2020, which he updated after the May 29 national and provincial elections.
He said one of the possible options to explore the current conjuncture in order to shape the future was to review the Freedom Charter, whose major content be based on South Africa as a country pursuing developmentalism with its own characteristics.
Mahumapelo said this was important because developmentalism differs from one country to another based on its own circumstances.
“That is why a country such as China believes in socialism but socialism with Chinese characteristics,” he said.
Mahumapelo added that the broad consultation to review the Freedom Charter would not only assist in ensuring active citizenry but ensure that the ultimate final document, the South African Freedom Charter for a developmental state is something that all society can own, internalise, collectively implement, defend and review after every three decades.
“The people and all other trading partners will be able to understand that, though democratic elections may result in the change of the country’s political leadership, there will be certainty and predictability on fundamental matters such as international relations, economy, social cohesion etc,” Mahumapelo stated.
Mahumapelo has also called for a review of the manner in which the party operates and proposes radical changes to the organisation as acceptance of the reality that the society has undergone rapid, far-reaching and unavoidable changes.
He is also critical of the way ANC branches are structures, saying there are a few that can be described as fully functional, effective and at all times placed at the centre of challenges facing communities.
According to Mahumapelo, ANC branches are now characterised by being concerned about conferences.
He said they are mostly non-functional and without community programmes, politically fractured, easy to buy and easy to sell tendencies, easy to suppress because of low levels of political education.
Additionally, he said ANC branches have a tendency to self suppress due to a wrong understanding of democratic centralism while some are riddled with violent conflict.
They are also easy to manipulate by powerful individuals wielding the power of money and positions and members have low levels of technical abilities or lack the use of such, according to Mahumapelo.
He suggested a new approach by establishing different forums catering for
ANC fans, voters, activists, members, supporters, senior citizens, stalwarts and veterans as well as former public representatives such as those who served as presidents, deputy presidents, ministers, deputy ministers, members of Parliament and provincial legislatures, premiers, MECs, mayors, whips and councillors.
He also wants the ANC to introduce a position of deputy president responsible for international relations in both the ANC and the government to give the president as a head of state sufficient time to focus more on domestic matters and only deal with the most strategic matters of geo-politics.
Mahumapelo said the deputy president responsible for international relations will be someone at a very senior level interacting and working with other countries and like-minded progressive organisations, individuals and forums at an international level on a full-time basis.
He believes the ANC NEC, which is its highest decision-making structure between national conferences, should be reduced 54 members representing each of the party’s regions nationwide.