By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) will report back to communities on what it has achieved in the implementation of its 2019 election manifesto.
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula addressed the media on the state of readiness for the 2019 Manifesto Review and the National Working Committee meeting that took place on August 28.
“We felt it is important to report back to the people about the performance of the ANC. We have not completed the term, but at the same time, we want to say what are the outstanding things and what are the obstacles we have to tackle going forward,” Mbalula said.
“The manifesto demonstrates our willingness to listen to criticism and feedback and re-establish our connection with society. By doing so, we hope to improve our performance, refresh our mandate, and continue to work for our people,” he said.
ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to deliver an address at the Dobsonville Stadium in Soweto this Sunday, marking the start of the ANC’s 2019 Manifesto Review programme.
The manifesto review and report-back session will further be rolled out to different provinces as follows:
– Northern Cape on September 16
– Eastern Cape on September 16
– Free State on September 9
– Mpumalanga on September 16
– Limpopo on September 16
– Western Cape on September 16
– North West on September 23
– KwaZulu-Natal – to be confirmed
Reflecting on some of outcomes of the recent National Working Committee meeting, Mbalula said they received a report on Eskom’s issues and noted concerns about its privatisation “due to misinformation about the unbundling of Eskom into three public company utilities”.
The NWC said it wanted to make it clear that all three public utilities will be owned by the State, with the generation utility competing against other producers to produce and sell power at competitive prices.
This came after Ramaphosa said in 2019 that Eskom would be split into separate distribution, generation and transmission entities, adding that “bold decisions and decisive action” were needed to save the struggling power utility”.
It also comes amid the tension between Mbalula and senior ANC ministers Gordhan and Energy Minister Gwede Mantashe over solutions for the energy crisis.
Mbalula said the cash-strapped power utility will not be privatised.
“The ANC national working committee received a report on Eskom issues and noted concerns around privatisation due to misinformation around unbundling of Eskom into three public companies.
Mbalula also claimed the ANC was voted out of power in 2016 and can’t be blamed for the fire that gripped a dilapidated Johannesburg building, killing at least 74 people.
His claims contradict the historical power shifts in the governance of Johannesburg, where the ANC held power for longer than the DA and its coalition partners.
“The ANC has been out of power for almost 10 years here in Johannesburg. The mayor was Herman Mashaba and Mpho Phalatse, and the mayor now is [Kabelo] Gwamanda. So, the ANC is not in charge of the City, and that is a fact,” Mbalula said.
The ANC currently has a handful of mayoral committee positions in Joburg. The government headed by Gwamanda was voted into power by the ANC twice with support from the EFF.