ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula says the Provincial Task Team mandate has lapsed, adding the organisation is now “rebuilding root and branch” and restructuring provincial and regional leadership structures.
Image: Fikile Mbalula / X
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula says communists are allowed in the ANC and dual membership is not in question, adding that the question of the South African Communist Party (SACP) contesting elections is a tactical issue that will be evaluated over time.
Mbalula was speaking during a media briefing in Durban this week, where he addressed questions about the ANC KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Task Team (PTT), internal structures, and alliance relations.
This comes after the appointment of former eThekwini mayor James Nxumalo as ANC KwaZulu-Natal PTT provincial coordinator, despite his dual membership as an ANC member and a communist.
Responding to concerns about whether the appointment of dual members creates tension within the alliance, Mbalula said there was “nothing wrong” with the arrangement and that communists remain fully part of the ANC.
“James is an ANC member. We are not navigating anything. He’s a coordinator of the ANC, and he can still remain a communist. There’s no problem. His dual membership is not in question,” Mbalula said.
He added that the fact that the SACP is contesting elections does not mean communists are excluded from the ANC.
“The Communist Party is contesting elections does not mean that communists are gone in the African National Congress. It’s a tactical issue, the question of contestation.
''And in the long term it will be evaluated as to whether it was to the best interest of the revolution or it weakened us further,” he said.
Mbalula said the current PTT’s mandate had lapsed and the ANC was now “opening a new chapter” in rebuilding its provincial structures.
“There is nothing that went wrong. The PTT mandate has lapsed. And therefore, we are reinforcing and reorganising ourselves better based on both the challenges and successes of the past 12 months in office of this particular structure,” he said.
He acknowledged weaknesses in the party’s organisational rebuilding efforts but said the ANC was moving into a restructuring phase.
“We will dwell into the weaknesses, for instance, of building structures and so on. We think where we are, we now understand better what we need to do going forward,” Mbalula said.
The ANC will also reduce the size of its task teams, with Mbalula confirming that structures will be trimmed across provinces.
“The task team, of course, will be trimmed. No longer from 60. All these task teams, including Gauteng, we’re going to trim them,” he said, adding that members will be reassigned to regional structures.
He said the party aimed to strengthen its presence on the ground and improve organisational coordination.
“We are in the mood of rebuilding root and branch the ANC and we are getting into this fully aware of the challenges of the past,” Mbalula said.
Mbalula further said the ANC would intensify its organisational work in KwaZulu-Natal and expected improvements in the coming months.
“You will not be shocked that in the next coming months you will see the rising of the African National Congress,” he said.
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