By Thapelo Molefe
The ANC has made it clear that it wants to take full control of the City of Tshwane, declaring that South Africa’s capital city must not be governed by any other political party.
ANC Gauteng provincial co-convener Panyaza Lesufi made the declaration while addressing the 12th ANC Greater Tshwane Regional Conference, currently underway under the theme “Renew, Rebuild and Unite towards the consolidation of people’s power”.
Lesufi told delegates that the ANC was “tired of sharing leadership” in Tshwane through coalition arrangements and wanted to govern the metro alone in order to focus on service delivery.
“We are tired of sharing leadership with ActionSA, the EFF and other parties. We want to take over Tshwane alone as the African National Congress and not spend time consulting, but spend time servicing our people,” Lesufi said.
He said that coalition and unity governments had weakened the state’s ability to deliver services, and that the ANC had experienced the “pain” of governing through local, provincial and national unity arrangements.
Lesufi stressed that Tshwane, as the administrative capital of the country, should be led by the ANC and no other political formation.
“We are down on our knees as your provincial leaders. We can’t have the capital city of the country being led by any other political party except the African National Congress,” he said.
He claimed that parties currently sharing power in Tshwane were benefiting from the ANC’s strength in council, warning them against taking credit for governance outcomes.
“No matter how good ActionSA can be, they are good purely because they are riding on the shoulders of a giant, the African National Congress. In the absence of the ANC, there is no municipality here,” Lesufi said.
Lesufi said when the ANC lost control of Tshwane in the past, it accepted its role in opposition, but other parties later approached the ANC to stabilise the municipality, which he claimed was struggling financially and administratively.
Beyond local government power, Lesufi urged ANC members to refocus on substantive issues affecting residents, including unemployment, crime, poverty, inequality, inflation, healthcare and education, warning against conferences being reduced to leadership contests.
“These issues must be high on the agenda when you finish this conference on Sunday. Not individuals, not positions, but the problems that confront our people,” he said.
He also reaffirmed the ANC’s commitment to social support measures, free education and the National Health Insurance (NHI), which he described as “non-negotiable,” while calling for new ideas that create opportunities rather than reliance on handouts.
Lesufi turned his fire on the Democratic Alliance (DA), dismissing claims that the party governs better where it is in power.
“Tshwane is a proper example that where the Democratic Alliance governs, they govern worse. They don’t take care of our people and they mess things up,” he said.
He accused previous DA-led administrations of failing to manage the metro’s finances, including an inability to pay Eskom and Rand Water, and rejected the notion that DA governance represents a viable alternative for the capital.
The ANC Greater Tshwane Regional Conference is expected to conclude on Sunday.
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