Mbeki's Renewal Call: A Race Against Time for Ethical Leadership

Prof. Bheki Mngomezulu

As the ANC’s support consistently diminishes in each election since 2019, former President Thabo Mbeki has been making frantic attempts to try and redeem his organisation from this decline, albeit with minimal success. Part of the reason for the evident challenge in rescuing the ANC from itself is that some of its leaders continuously score own goals, unprovoked, thereby giving the ANC’s political opponents free points. 

Among other things, Mbeki has been calling for the audit of the membership of the ANC. His proposal is premised on the understanding that the party has attracted people who either joined the organisation with ill intentions of self-enrichment or are genuine members of the party but lack understanding about the ANC and what it stands for, since they were never exposed to political education about the party and about politics in general.

Flowing from the above, Mbeki has been calling for the need for political education among ANC members. During the weekend of September 27, 2025, Mbeki led a landmark political class for the ANC structures in KwaZulu-Natal. 

This was Mbeki’s maiden political engagement since the reconfiguration of the provincial leadership structure by the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) in February 2025.

Expounding his mission, Mbeki has called for an ANC renewal conference, which would assist the party in its resolve to renew itself. While Mbeki’s views are welcome and understandable, they inevitably raise several questions. 

Firstly, when did the ANC realise that there was an ethical leadership deficit in its fold? What did it do about that? Following the Zondo Commission, where close to R1 billion was used and where some ANC leaders were implicated, what did the party do to cleanse itself and instill ethical leadership? Did the party’s decision to shield President Ramaphosa when he wanted to resign following the Phala Phala saga help its renewal agenda?

Secondly, regarding KwaZulu-Natal, the reconfiguration of the provincial leadership happened in February this year. Now Mbeki’s mandate is to assist the province by shedding light on the steps it needs to follow to regain public trust and win back lost support. 

Commenting on this move, ANC spokesperson in KwaZulu-Natal, Fanele Sibisi, stated that "This critical engagement will provide ANC members and leaders with clear guidance on what must be done to regain the trust of the people and to ensure that the ANC once again stands as a trusted force rooted in people’s power.”  

The question becomes: Why now? Would it not have been proper to dispatch Mbeki soon after the reconfiguration of the provincial leadership? Importantly, since the ANC took a nosedive in the 2019 general election and the 2021 Local Government Election (LGE), did the ANC not see the need to renew itself and try to regain public trust, which it once enjoyed? Even before going to the provincial leadership, regions, and branches, did the ANC national leadership in the NEC and National Working Committee (NWC) do any self-reflection?

Thirdly, with the LGE coming in 2026, is the ANC’s move to renew itself and entrench ethical leadership, or is it a race against time? Moreover, since the party will hold regional conferences in November 2025, is there enough time to train and produce ethical leaders? What about factional politics to which the ANC owes its decline?

Fourthly, since the ANC will hold its National General Council (NGC) from 8 to 12 December 2025, what would be the ideal time for Mbeki’s proposed renewal conference? If the NGC were converted to the renewal conference, would this be in line with the ANC constitution? Importantly, following the SACP’s decision to contest next year’s LGE alone, would the envisioned renewal conference include the SACP and Cosatu as Alliance partners? If that were to happen, what purpose would it serve, given that there is already a trust deficit among Alliance partners?

Fifthly, the recently released interim report by the Special Investigating Unit (SIU) regarding corrupt activities at Tembisa Hospital, other corrupt activities across the country, and what is emerging from the ongoing Madlanga Commission raises questions about ethical leadership, inaction by those in positions of authority, and empty promises by the political leadership. 

Given that corruption has been part and parcel of our body politic, the question becomes: why has the political leadership not acted when things happened? To what extent did factionalism play a role in this inaction? When citizens complain about service delivery and are given empty promises, does this draw them closer to the ANC or pull them away?

These and other questions point to a deep-rooted problem that cannot be resolved by a renewal conference. More work still needs to be done because serious damage has been done to the ANC over the years. Unfortunately, those who provide constructive criticism are labelled as ‘enemies.’ Progressive and critical voices from within the party are accused of being counterrevolutionaries.

As for Mbeki, he was recalled from office by the ANC in September 2008. However, he remained a member of the ANC NEC. One wonders why it takes him so long to push for the renewal conference and the political education project? This question is given credence by the fact that for years, Mbeki was reluctant to campaign for the ANC out of disappointment. One would have expected someone of his stature in the ANC and in the country to provide leadership when it became clear that the ANC was falling out of favour.

In principle, Mbeki’s ANC renewal conference call is commendable. His concerns about the state of leadership of the party are also reasonable and fair. But his delayed response to an endemic challenge is concerning. The damage to the ANC’s reputation is so huge, and the time is not on the party’s side. Successive elections show that the ANC is losing support. Sadly, the leadership does not embrace constructive criticism.

Honesty, political education, leadership dexterity, and ethical and visionary leadership are ingredients for the renewal agenda. But time is up!  

* Prof. Bheki Mngomezulu is Director of the Centre for the Advancement of Non-Racialism and Democracy at Nelson Mandela University.

** The views expressed do not necessarily reflect the views of IOL, Independent Media or The African.