Ramaphosa must lead not only the renewal of a party, but also of a country

The election of Cyril Ramaphosa to the helm of the ANC at its 54th elective conference last month has revived the ruling party, injecting new vigour and giving hope, not only to its faithful, but to the broader South African community. Excitement has gripped ordinary ANC members around the country. This excitement is now being felt by many others on the sidelines and outside the structures of the party. Tens of thousands of disgruntled supporters, many of whom had long deserted the organisation, are again able to believe change is on the horizon and that their party is on course to reclaim its position as the leader of society.

Judging by the scenes on the streets of East London this week, the recent national conference has done the ANC brand a world of good. South Africans of all creeds, different religious backgrounds, all strata, and all races are embracing Ramaphosa’s elevation. Many see him as the man to lead the concerted effort that is needed for the urgently required renewal of our country.

Since the beginning of the year, Ramaphosa has been crisscrossing the country to spread his mantra: “Unity is not an option; it is not a choice; it is a must for all of us as members of the ANC.” He took the same message to the tens of thousands who attended the ANC’s 106th anniversary celebrations in East London yesterday. He used his speech to call on the different factions of the ANC to unite.

The call for unity in the ANC is the right one. If the ANC wants to be returned as the governing party after next year’s general elections,

Ramaphosa has only a small window to help it to mend its wayward ways. And he has to start now as the election campaign launches in the next few months.

Ramaphosa needs to realise that he has everything going for him right now. The biggest boost to the ANC’s bid to retain political power, unlike in the two previous elections, is the fact that it will not be fending off a challenge from a splinter party made up of disgruntled former members.

While the composition of the party’s top six officials and its national executive committee may not be what the progressive faction within the ANC had hoped for, it has prevented a split, which looked possible only a few weeks ago.

In the build-up to the national conference, there were fears that the party would suffer another breakaway in the new year. While the ANC is not headed for a split, it is undeniably wounded and needs healing. Sadly, most of its wounds are self-inflicted. To be blunt, those wounds were inflicted by President Jacob Zuma and his acolytes.

That is why Ramaphosa’s message of healing and unity is understandable.

But with his eye on the Union Buildings next year, Ramaphosa needs to shift up a gear and also focus his messaging on those who are outside the ANC.

While many are excited by his presidency, it will take a long time to forget that the same ANC that Ramaphosa now leads is responsible for the mess we are in.

It is the ANC that is responsible for ushering in the rot that we see in every sphere of government, state-owned companies, in the education sector, law-enforcement agencies and even in parliament. Ramaphosa’s ANC gave us corruptible and dodgy leaders like

Ace Magashule, Jessie Duarte, Bongani Bongo, David Mahlobo, Mosebenzi Zwane, Des van Rooyen, Faith Muthambi and many who are serving in the NEC despite facing serious allegations of state capture.

The same ANC leaders whom Ramaphosa now leads folded their arms and did absolutely nothing as Zuma and his friends ran amok, selling our country to the Gupta family while destroying all democratic institutions.

While it is well and good to talk tough against corruption, as Ramaphosa has been doing, the reality is that it is the same ANC he now leads that allowed corruption to fester.

The ANC that Ramaphosa now leads is responsible for the mess we are in