By Johnathan Paoli
The African National Congress has issued a sharp public rebuke of two of its senior members, former and suspended ministers Malusi Gigaba and Senzo Mchunu, accusing them of violating internal communication protocols and undermining party unity with recent public remarks.
In a strongly worded statement released on Monday, ANC national spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu said the recent comments by the pair represented “a flagrant violation of ANC internal communication protocols” and amounted to “deliberate de-campaigning of the ANC”.
“Their remarks do not reflect the views of any legitimate structure of the movement and must be seen as an opportunistic assault on the collective image, credibility, and cohesion of the African National Congress,” Bhengu said.
The rebuke comes after suspended Police Minister and NEC member Mchunu delivered a stark warning at a tombstone unveiling for anti-apartheid activist Nokuhamba Nyawo in Machobeni, northern KwaZulu-Natal, over the weekend.
Mchunu told mourners that the ANC was “on the verge of collapse” and likened the party to “a person walking on the edge of a cliff”.
He said the 2026 local government elections would determine whether the ANC could survive into the next decade.
“If we do not win municipalities in the upcoming local government elections next year, come the national government elections, we will be history,” Mchunu warned.
Admitting that the party had alienated voters through arrogance and complacency, he said there was still a chance to regroup and regain support.
Mchunu also called for efforts to win back former members who had defected to smaller parties, saying the ANC needed to “mend its ways” before it was too late.
Meanwhile, Gigaba controversy with remarks questioning both the ANC’s leadership direction and the legitimacy of the Government of National Unity (GNU).
Speaking to journalists last week, Gigaba admitted he had “no knowledge of the agenda” for the upcoming National Dialogue and had not seen the guiding documents for the process.
“I have not seen the agenda. I don’t know who prepared the documents. I was invited to be part of the conversation, but I cannot comment on what will be discussed,” he said.
He went further, reiterating his longstanding view that the ANC should never have partnered with the Democratic Alliance in the GNU.
“I have always had the view that the GNU should have excluded the DA. I still hold that view even now. I don’t think there is anything that justifies why we are working with them. I think we would work better with other political organisations, including the EFF, than the DA,” Gigaba argued.
Bhengu said that the party was guided by the principles of democratic centralism and discipline, warning that no individual leader was above the organisation.
She stressed that only the secretary-general and the official national spokesperson were mandated to speak publicly on organisational positions.
Any deviation, she warned, undermined cohesion, unity and the broader programme of renewal.
The ANC urged all its members to “return to the basic principles and values of our movement” and to place discipline and renewal above personal agendas.
The party said that the renewal programme could not co-exist with ill-discipline, and it would not tolerate conduct that sought to weaken the collective.
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