By Akani Nkuna
ANC KwaZulu-Natal second deputy convenor Siboniso Duma says the party is in the process of removing leaders who do not uphold its values, adding that this was important to rebuild provincial structures.
Duma was speaking during an interview with reporters at the ANC’s National General Council (NGC) at Birchwood Hotel on Tuesday, the second day of the four-day conference in Boksburg.
He said the ANC’s renewal efforts in KZN must be driven by individuals with a deep understanding of the organisation’s founding principles, solid experience in lower structures, and a commitment to putting the needs of residents first.
“We do not want to short-circuit the process. We want to follow it to the letter. We are cleansing our organisation — and the ANC voters’ roll. Deployees must be people who understand the organisation; we do not want distortions or anyone who will misrepresent us,” Duma said.
Duma emphasised the importance of capable human capital in executing the party’s education, economic and infrastructure programmes, saying improved performance by ANC deployees in these sectors will be key to regaining voter confidence.
“Is the ANC building infrastructure? We are the organisation that must speak to that. Who is deployed at the site of struggle called government? Who is the HOD, the DDG, the chief director? What is their calibre — and can we say they represent the outlook of the ANC?” Duma added.
He stressed that the KZN provincial leadership is prioritising quality over quantity, saying the organisation must avoid producing leaders who do not understand what it means to represent the party.
“We have a choice: we can take anyone, or we can scrutinise. Until we have members we can fully account for, the recruitment strategy must remain rigorous. Otherwise, we risk breeding people who will cause chaos because they are not ANC material,” Duma said.
He added that it was imperative to strengthen ANC branches as the first line of defence and as key drivers of the party’s implementation strategies, ensuring that community grievances are addressed directly and narrowing the gap between residents and party leadership.
During last year’s general elections, the ANC suffered a major setback in KwaZulu-Natal, dropping to a historic low of 17% of the vote.
According to the party’s midterm review report, KZN has the highest number of ward branches in the country, with 901 in total.
However, the report also highlighted a significant concern: more than 82% of these branches have fewer than 100 members.
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