The good, the bad and the desperate

Though the ANC’s leadership likes to think it is intellectual and tries to convey that image, when it comes to political campaigning, it resorts to simplistic themes – and it is doing so again now. As the country heads to the polls in less than three months, the ANC has decided that one of its main messages is going to be contrasting Jacob Zuma with Thabo Mbeki. The message is clear. Zuma Bad. Mbeki Good.

It laid the ground for this when it suspended Zuma last week, labelling him, effectively, a counter-revolutionary “sellout” in the mould of Angolan rebel leader Jonas Savimbi and Mozambique’s Renamo leader, Afonso Dhlakama.

No-one, of course, has ever pinned those labels to Thabo Mbeki, who history in the revolutionary movement in exile is unquestioned.

Mbeki is also the president who presided over elections which produced record-winning majorities for the ANC – even more than the icon, Nelson Mandela, could do.

Economic growth was strong during Mbeki’s time at the helm of the party and government… albeit though some unions criticised the situation as “jobless growth”.

Mbeki has also never had his name besmirched by allegations of corruption – a dramatic contrast to the image of Zuma as the man who brought the country to its knees through looting facilitated by his state capture network.

In burnishing the image of Mbeki to use in its campaign, which implies the ANC and government can revive the “good old days” of the Mbeki era, the ruling party clearly would rather not talk about the darker side of the Mbeki presidency… or how 250 000 people died of Aids because of his obdurate refusal to countenance anti-retroviral drugs.

People and voters, though, have short memories and like to see things in easy-to-understand extremes.

So, bringing in the “good guy” might be a clever move by the ANC.