By Lehlohonolo Lehana.
The African National Congress (ANC) National Executive Committee (NEC) Lekgotla has reaffirmed South Africa’s commitment to progressive internationalism, Pan-Africanism and principled multilateralism.
ANC Secretary General Fikile Mbalula briefed the media on the Lekgotla held over the weekend of 24 and 25 January.
Mbalula said the Lekgotla noted the erosion of multilateral institutions, the rise of unilateralism and the persistence of global inequality, which he said posed serious challenges to peace, development and sovereignty, particularly for developing countries.
He said, South Africa maintains its support for multilateralism and won’t be policed or bullied by United States President Donald Trump.
Mbalula described South Africa’s relations with the United States as a “cold war.” He insisted that South Africa is being targeted by Trump, who has persistently and falsely maintained that there’s a genocide taking place in South Africa.
Africa Check debunked several claims Trump made about a genocide during a May 2025 meeting with president Cyril Ramaphosa in Washington.
Mbalula said that the party will organise a mass, national demonstration to send a message to Trump’s administration.
He said that South Africa is its own sovereign country and is engaged in a cold war with the US. The SG claimed that the protest is due to South Africa’s sovereignty being “under attack.”
He said that, in sending this message to the world, the ANC, together with its allies from civil society, labour, and business, will lead a mass national march on Saturday, 21 March 2026.
The relationship between South Africa and the United States has been rocky, with the US currently proposing three laws to impose penalties against South Africa and high-ranking officials.
Tensions can be traced back to key issues, including, but not limited to, South Africa’s case against Israel at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in 2024 and the deepening of BRICS partnerships along with other US adversaries.
Trump did not attend the G20 Leaders’ Summit held in South Africa in 2025, and furthermore has refused to invite South Africa to G20 events hosted by the US in 2026.
In the latest developments, the US issued a sharp rebuke of South Africa after it was confirmed that the South African Defence Force (SANDF) conducted naval exercises with Iran.
Mbalula also said the Lekgotla declared 2026 the Year of Decisive Action to Fix Local Government.
He highlighted that water provision, electricity supply, road maintenance, sanitation, refuse removal, human settlements and local economic development were central to restoring public confidence and dignity.
He also promised that service delivery ‘war rooms’ were being restructured, consolidated and strengthened on the back of lessons learned from the local, district/metro, provincial and national levels and revealed that the ANC would soon launch a toll-free service delivery hotline.
Mbalula explained that the Lekgotla further resolved that rapid-response technical teams should be deployed to priority municipalities, and that weekly monitoring of delivery performance be instituted.
“Priority workstreams include water reticulation, road rehabilitation, energy network stability, clean towns and cities, human settlements delivery, climate-resilient infrastructure and local job creation,” he said.
Mbalula blamed uneven execution, coordination and capacity, rather than a lack of policies, as the major challenge.
The NEC Lekgotla resolved to strengthen intergovernmental coordination, align planning and budgeting across spheres, and speed up the professionalisation of public service.
The ANC also promised to intensify oversight over governance performance, while supporting capacity-building interventions.
The Lekgotla further reaffirmed the importance of strengthening the tripartite alliance as well as partnerships with labour, business, civil society, traditional leaders and progressive formations.