By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa may have been re-elected under a banner of renewal but the only brushing “Mr. Clean” seems to be doing is sweeping over the line between party and state.
Ramaphosa’s emerged victorious at the ANC’s national conference last month, beating his rival, former health minister Zweli Mkhize, to the presidency by 2,476 votes to 1,897.
Ramaphosa delivered the ANC’s January 8 statement at the Dr Petrus Molemela Stadium in Mangaung, Free State on Sunday.
The celebrations marked ANC’s 111th anniversary since its formation in 1912.
He has reiterated that plans are in the pipeline to end load shedding.
Ramaphosa told a packed stadium that the ANC had to find urgent solutions to ongoing load shedding that continued to impact economic growth.
He added the government and Eskom should work on ensuring the return of additional units at the parastatal to clamp down on power cuts. Other cushions should be the further implementation of the government’s plan to source other forms of energy besides coal.
“The board needs to recruit world-class professionals to fill vacancies in executive management.
“To further reduce stress on the grid, the government and Eskom must enforce demand management measures to reduce electricity consumption and ensure availability of energy areas and sectors of priority, including health, education, and infrastructure,” Ramaphosa said.
Another concern was crime and corruption, which continue to be associated in some instances with ANC members.
Ramaphosa said the ANC would continue to strengthen law enforcement agencies, saying a weak security cluster often bred continued lawlessness and violence.
He added an increase in workplace personnel at the police would go a long way in meeting community safety needs.
The issue around a lack of enough police officers has been documented in parliamentary oversight work, with quarterly crime statistics showing the impact of the gap.
Ramaphosa said the ANC will also double down on efforts to root out corruption in leadership structures.
Several party leaders have been implicated in corruption scandals, with the State Capture Commission of Inquiry further smearing the image of the party.
Despite pushback from some quarters within the party, the ANC resolved to maintain its controversial step-aside resolution at its recent 55th national conference.
Ramaphosa said the party would stop at nothing to clean up its image, adding the party would also implement recommendations in the state capture report to avoid further crippling public institutions.
“We view corruption as being counter-revolutionary. Any ANC member implicated or involved in corrupt activities will be dealt with and must be dealt with according to the ANC rules to enhance the integrity of the organisation.”
Read the full ANC statement here: ANC January 8 Statement 2023.