Foundation rejects report

The Thabo Mbeki Foundation (TMF) has rejected what they called “spurious allegations” in a report published by The Citizen in Wednesday’s edition.

The foundation denied that the ex-president, who is its patron, was serving as an advisor to new ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa.

“This article is riddled with serious inaccuracies and a poor attempt to revise the content of the interview that president Mbeki conducted with the SABC in Addis Ababa, which was a wide ranging interview about the challenges facing our continent ... including the change of leadership of the ANC”.

Foundation spokesperson Thami Ntenteni accused the newspaper of seeking to “impose its own views, while presenting them as those of president Mbeki”.

“The TMF wishes to place it on record that president Mbeki stated that the leadership of the ANC must be given an opportunity to deal with the issues that they themselves have raised: fighting corruption, the renewal of the ANC, the unity of the ANC, etc.

“He further urged the party’s leadership to heed the ANC stalwarts declaration of November 2017 – which was subsequently adopted by the ANC Veterans’ League...

“As part of the Veterans’ League, president Mbeki would, therefore, welcome an opportunity for the veterans to be advised by the leadership of the ANC as to what they – as the veterans – must do to assist the party they have served for most of their lives. “

The Citizen story was intended to bring to the attention of the readers that Mbeki has – as pointed out in an editorial comment – offered his experience and expertise to the new ANC leadership.

This, by the way, is exactly what the SABC said in the introduction to the interview,… yet there was no comment on that from the TMF. He himself has gone on the record as making that offer.

Our view is that making use of the talents of people like Mbeki and other experienced, but currently alienated people is good, not only for the ANC, but for SA.