Oscar Mabuyane addressing the Provincial Lekgotla earlier today
By Staff Reporter in East London
The African National Congress (ANC) in the Eastern Cape has called for renewal and action to address the challenges facing the province and the country. Provincial Chairperson Oscar Mabuyane emphasized the need for the ANC to rebuild its branch functionality, strengthen mass mobilization capacity, and reconnect with the people.
Mabuyane was adressing the opening of The Lekgotla earlier today. In a statementt the ANC in the province said the Lekgotla will focus on strengthening organisational coherence, sharpening implementation of priorities for the year , and ensuring readiness across all centres of power to advance the agenda of social and economic transformation.
The ANC has outlined 10 strategic priorities for the province, including building a capable and developmental state, fixing local government, accelerating economic growth, and tackling unemployment. Mabuyane stressed that these priorities must guide the party’s work and be articulated confidently by ordinary members.
Mabuyane is concerned about levels of unemployment in the province,”On the economic front, comrades, we must come up with programmes to alleviate the unemployment challenge in our province. If there is one thing that making our people despondent about the ANC, it is unemployment. If we rely too much on business to address this challenge, we will lose power comrades. We are in government, we hold the public purse, we must intervene to create jobs for our people.”
The party is gearing up for the 2026 local government elections, which will be a crucial test of its organizational coherence, political relevance, and leadership presence on the ground. Mabuyane emphasized the need for visible, accessible, and accountable leadership that can demonstrate its commitment to serving the people. According to Mabuyane the ANC remain strong as an organisation, though it is facing challenges including decline in electoral support. He believes the movement will rebound and reassert itself decisively.
Said Mbuyane, “We are not in office to seat in air-conditioned offices, we are here to serve the masses out there.
“We must know what the situation is on the ground where our people reside.”
The ANC has also highlighted the importance of addressing the challenges facing the province, including service delivery issues, economic stagnation, and high unemployment. The party’s leaders have emphasized the need for accountability, transparency, and good governance, and warned that leadership without accountability is untenable.
In his address, Mabuyane also touched on international issues, including the conduct of Israel and the need for South Africa to assert its sovereignty. “We applaud Dirco for the swift response of declaring the Israeli envoy persona non grata and instructing him to leave our country,” Mabuyane said.
“South Africa is not a mini country in the family of nations. Our sovereignty must be respected. Contrary to people who think the matter is about donations, it is not. It is about affirming our sovereignty, it is about being respected as a nation. Government accepts donations from various countries of the world but that is done through diplomatic protocols. We did it during Covid, when our health system was under strain, we received donations of PPEs and other necessary equipment from China, the USA, and many other countries that helped us to save the lives of our people.”
Mabuyane further warned comrades engaging in early nomination talks, “We must control our ambitions, comrades, because the public listens to what we say about the ANC-led government.
“Once the nomination process is officially opened, it is the basic units of the movement, our branches, that will exercise their full organisational rights to pronounce on leadership choices.”
The Lekgotla continues till tomorrow.
