We will get it right – ANC
Vows to win over public and roll out best talent for delivery
THE ANC has laid down the law for its members as it seeks to clean up its act by banning lobby groups and the widespread use of slates to determine the party’s leadership.
And as the ANC embarks on a plan to win back voter confidence, it will also introduce lifestyle audits. It threw down the gauntlet on the private sector to do the same.
The governing party plans to hold on to black middle-class voters who are the deciding factor in economic powerhouse provinces like Gauteng. The party vowed to beef up its election machinery by selecting mayoral candidates in strategic municipalities ahead of next year’s local government elections.
President Jacob Zuma told delegates in his closing address yesterday that the party’s integrity commission would be bolstered and its findings binding on all members.
There have been concerns that the integrity commission, which was set up as part of resolutions taken at the 2012 Mangaung elective conference, is a toothless organ for apparently failing to take action against members charged with corruption, among other transgressions.
Yesterday, Zuma confirmed the stance taken by the NGC on strengthening the integrity commission, but insisted that the commission should not be abused.
“This NGC paid particular attention to the standing, capacity and powers of the integrity com- mission… We agreed that the decisions of the integrity commission are binding and the commission should be better resourced to fulfil its mandate,” reads the NGC declaration.
“The integrity commission should not be abused for factional purposes or as an instrument to fight certain individuals within the movement,” Zuma said.
The declaration of the NGC was unequivocal on lobbying, slates and consolidation of leadership preferences, and ignoring branch mandates. Anyone caught lobbying on behalf of individual leaders or groups of individuals outside of branch mandates would face disciplinary action.
“To confront the practice of factionalism in leadership elections, we agreed that the formalisation of lobby groups and the promotion of slates should be disciplinary offences.
“Branch delegates should vote according to their branch mandate at elective conferences and the practice of consolidating preferences at regional or provincial level must end,” the declaration reads.
Zuma announced further steps to deal with the scourge of corruption in government, which will see public servants and those working in state-owned agencies undergoing lifestyle audits.
“We will introduce lifestyle audits for all employees of the state and its agencies. There will also be a vetting process for all employees of the state,” he said.
“We are also introducing a single vetting system for all the employees of the state. The deployment committee should also ensure that vetting is done on members before deployment.”
With the party set to fight what is expected to be a tough local government election next year, when it will be fighting to retain the metros that it governs, there has been an emphasis on regaining the support from its traditional bases. The party has been warned that if its support in the upcoming elections declined below 60 percent, this would represent a “psychological and political turning point”.
The ANC’s declining membership would make its election campaign an uphill battle.
“Beyond membership, the ANC also needs to win back all our traditional supporters who have been dissatisfied, ahead of the local government elections. We will win them back based on how we conduct ourselves as members and also how we implement the good policies of the ANC,” Zuma said.
In a shift from its traditional focus in terms of voter support, the NGC has also come out with strong emphasis on retaining the support of the black middle class.
Zuma appealed to the party faithful to go to work in their communities to try to stem any further losses in support.
ANC national executive committee member Pravin Gordhan said earlier that if the party had ambitions of winning elections, it needed people who could lead communities and ensure services were delivered. “We want to win the confidence of our people and we are going to win it by looking after them and delivering,” he said.