President Cyril Ramaphosa. (Photo by Mlungisi Louw/Volksblad/Gallo Images via Getty Images)
President Cyril Ramaphosa said failure to govern in major towns such as Johannesburg, eThekwini and Buffalo City contributed to the ANC's poor electoral performance in the May 29 national and provincial elections.
Speaking at a political overview at the ANC national executive committee (NEC) Lekgotla opening ceremony in Boksburg on Sunday, Ramaphosa said attention needed to be paid to local government as they were vital in providing infrastructure and basic services to residents.
“We agreed with our alliance partners that municipalities are paramount in creating an enabling environment for businesses to grow and create jobs,” he said at the meeting, which was also attended by leaders of the ANC's alliance partners, the South African Communist Party and trade union federation Cosatu.
“We have seen the impact of local government failure on election outcomes and we know that many people were disappointed and frustrated with the state of service delivery and infrastructure at the local level where they live and so refrained from voting.”
The ANC has been struggling to retain power in Gauteng municipalities and has recently had to negotiate agreements with ActionSA to work together in Johannesburg and Ekurhuleni.
President Ramaphosa said his party's analysis showed the ANC had suffered its biggest drop in vote share in metropolitan areas.
“The insecurity, dysfunction and poor performance of major cities such as Johannesburg, Tshwane, Ekurhuleni, eThekwini and Buffalo City are clearly reflected in the election results,” he said.
“Therefore, decisive intervention in these big cities is necessary, not just for the sake of the ANC's electoral prospects but also to generate inclusive growth and ensure job creation and poverty reduction.”
He noted that these large cities are home to millions of people and are where most of South Africa's economic activity takes place.The National Executive Committee has assessed all the suspended municipalities in the country and resolved to intervene and work with various stakeholders to stabilise them, he added.
“This month, the National Task Team on Coalition will begin operations in Johannesburg and will contribute to the repair, reconstruction and renewal of various structures to better serve the public,” he said.
President Ramaphosa acknowledged that internal weaknesses within the ANC also contributed to the dismal election results.
“South Africans have seen the erosion of our values and principles, the deterioration of our institutional capacity, the proliferation of corruption, nepotism, division and sectarianism, and they have punished us,” he said.
For the first time in 30 years of democracy, the liberation movement failed to secure the 50% of the vote needed to take power, forcing the formation of a government of national unity between the Democratic Alliance, Inkatha Freedom Party, Rise Mzansi, GOOD, Patriotic Union, Al-Jama'a, PLUS Freedom Front, Pan African Congress and United Democratic Movement.
The ANC's national executive committee has been meeting in Boksburg for the past three days to consider a range of issues, including the party's electoral defeat.
“Over the past three days, the Electoral Commission has had to deliberate extensively and in detail on the reasons for this dramatic drop in support, consider its implications and the steps that need to be taken to restore the ANC's support in society,” President Ramaphosa said.
“In many ways, we are entering uncharted territory. We have never been in a situation like this before. We have suffered a strategic setback that will have far-reaching implications and effects on how we wage the struggle to fundamentally transform our country.”
But rather than seeing this as a drop in electoral support, he said the party should see it as a call to action.
“Now is not the time to be bitter, this is not the time to feel defeated, this is the time to be better, to do better,” President Ramaphosa said.
“The Lekgotla's mandate is to begin the work that is needed at this time to protect and advance workers' rights and build a strong, growing and inclusive economy that provides endless opportunities and livelihoods for people across the country.”
“This election must focus on the key issues of economy and economic reform. People want a reformed, growing and inclusive economy that creates jobs for millions of job seekers.”
“As an alliance, we must confront the fact that our economy has barely grown in the last 14 years. From 2010 to 2024, the average annual growth rate of GDP was 1.2 percent each year, which is anemic growth. This was lower than the rate of population growth over the same period.”