Mbalula: Appointments will be based on competence over cadre deployment:
ANC secretary general Fikile Mbalula says the party will not tolerate cadre deployment that prioritises political connections over competence.
“Only those who can effectively deliver services will be retained or appointed,” Mbalula said.
“A skills audit for all senior municipal managers in the Free State is being conducted to ensure qualified and competent individuals occupy key positions in municipalities.”
Mbalula made the remarks on Monday while speaking to journalists at Windmill Casino in Bloemfontein after the party’s national working committee (NWC) visit to branches in all five regions of the province.
Cadre deployment involves placing people in positions of authority in the state and other areas of influence. The policy has been challenged by the Democratic Alliance (DA) in court. Last year, DA suffered a knock after the Pretoria high court rejected, with costs, its application to have the ANC’s cadre deployment policy declared unconstitutional.
Over the weekend, the party’s officials and the NWC visited the five regions in the province to assess the state of branches.
Mbalula said the Free State had immense potential for economic growth, but that this has been halted by poor governance, lack of investment and inadequate infrastructure.
In a bid to stabilise municipalities in the province, Mbalula said the ANC’s local government interventions task team would be sent to assist struggling municipalities to provide technical support and support where urgent agent action is needed.
It has been speculated that the national working committee was considering reconfiguring or disbanding the provincial executive committee (PEC) because of divisions and infighting among its leaders.
This would not be the first time the ANC dissolved the province; it did so in 2012 and 2021.
Mbalula said they were not replacing the PEC but doing what is expected of them, which is to service all party structures on the ground.
“We have full confidence in our PEC in the Free State led by Mxolisi Dukwana. There is no house that doesn’t have problems. These comrades have fought hard in an election which we thought we’d lose hands down,” he said.
“Free State was an epitome of what we call state capture; all sorts of corrupt activities came from here. This leadership, it is our duty to remind them that the ANC has been voted in in the Free State to ensure we undo all these corrupt activities of the past.”
On Saturday, ANC chairperson Gwede Mantsashe said they were not discussing reconfiguration or disbandment but they were looking for ways to rebuild the party.
In last year’s national and provincial elections, the ANC secured a narrow majority with 52.88% in the Free State.
This marked a drop from the 62.94% the party achieved in 2019.
Mantashe cautioned the PEC against internal divisions, adding that the ANC had a lot of work to do in building the branches.
“The Free State can not relax with a 52% win, that is very much hanging over the cliff, they must pick up and improve their performance.”
He said the leadership could continue dividing itself and suffer the consequences or unite and build the party.
On Sunday, while speaking to the media, ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri said the NWC’s visit aims to reinforce party structures rather than dissolve them.
“It’s part of the renewal of the ANC. It’s part of the rebuilding of the ANC,” she said.
Bhengu-Motsiri dismissed speculation about leadership changes in the province.
“It is a visit by the organisation to have a look at the state of our structures and how we can reinforce the work that is being done.”
South Africa’s unemployed graduates stuck in limbo:
As the future of a nation hangs in the balance, the question is: what happens when its most promising minds remain unemployed and are instead filled with shattered dreams?
The feeling of accomplishment that comes with graduating from a higher education institution is hard to match. After three to four years of tireless effort, sacrifice and perseverance, one would expect to be catapulted into a world of possibilities where their skills and knowledge are put to good use.
But for many young graduates, the harsh reality is a far cry from this ideal. Instead of walking into a job or starting their own venture, they find themselves stuck at home with nothing but their qualifications to show for their hard work.
The journey to this point is often marked by significant obstacles, from navigating the complexities of funding and financial aid to securing decent accommodation and balancing the demands of academic life. Despite these difficulties, many students push through, driven by the promise of a better future. But when graduation day finally arrives, and the job offers don’t, the sense of disappointment and disillusionment can be overwhelming.
The mental toll of this experience cannot be overstated, as feelings of frustration, anxiety and despair begin to creep in, eroding the confidence and self worth that once drove these young individuals to pursue their dreams.
Securing internship opportunities, a key stepping stone to entering the job market, has proven to be a daunting task. I can attest to this firsthand, having navigated the difficulties of finding an internship despite my academic credentials. With a qualification earned with flying colours, accolades from writing competitions and recognition as one of the top students in my class, I thought I had done everything right.
Moreover, I have written an academic article demonstrating my expertise and commitment to my field. Despite these achievements, I struggle to land an internship or entry-level job. The reason? I don’t possess a driver’s licence or own a car, a requirement that seems to be a non-negotiable prerequisite for many employers. This experience has left me wondering: am I underqualified? Is my qualification not considered a “scarce skill,” as the minister of higher education would put it?
I’m not alone in this struggle. My sister, who has excelled in her studies and graduated cum laude in mathematical statistics and physics up to her master’s degree, is also sitting at home unemployed. Despite her impressive academic record and four years of tutoring experience, she can’t find employment.
What exactly do we need to do to secure a job in this system? Is it not enough to have a qualification, skills and experience? What are the missing links that we’re not aware of? The uncertainty and frustration of being unable to find employment despite our best efforts are taking a toll on our mental and emotional well-being.
As I sit here surrounded by the echoes of unfulfilled dreams and shattered aspirations, I am reminded that the harsh reality of unemployment is a constant companion for many graduates like me. The sad truth is that grants and handouts are merely Band Aid solutions, incapable of providing the financial freedom we desperately crave. We need a chance to prove ourselves, apply our skills and knowledge in a real-world setting, and earn a decent living that allows us to support ourselves and our families.
Until that day comes, we remain stuck in this limbo, our potential wasting away like a flower that’s been denied the sunlight it needs to bloom. How many more graduates will have to suffer in silence before our cries for help are heard?
Lindokuhle Tonono is an honours student at the University of South Africa, studying Integrated Organisational Communication.
Ukraine’s sovereignty is non-negotiable:
I have read several critiques levelled against President Volodymyr Zelenskyy which argue that he is being used as a stooge in a proxy war between several Western countries and Russia. Fair enough.
It is perhaps obvious that Zelenskyy’s attempt to take on “Mother Russia” was inspired and cheered on by support from the West alongside sanctions imposed on Russia, equally by Western countries.
The real question here is: what was the alternative? An unstable peace constructed on continuously living in the shadows of Russia because of some post-Cold War agreement? Or the inability of the Ukrainians to map the way forward for their country and forge new alliances in the contemporary era of globalisation?
Interestingly, Russia did not adopt a similar bellicose foreign policy when neighbouring Finland applied to and eventually joined the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation in 2022.
Arguing that Zelenskyy is a stooge also undermines Ukrainian agency, which is informed by the fact that it is against human nature for people to want to live as second-class global citizens.
Machiavelli erroneously assumed that “fear is maintained by a dread of punishment which never fails”. A nation cannot continuously live in fear, especially given the changing dynamics of foreign policies which are informed by the whims and caprices of the forever-changing leadership of each country.
Irrespective of the consequences, there comes a time in the lives of leaders, a people and a country to take a stand. The slaves in the New World knew this when they revolted in the plantations. The same thing happened when the expansionist ambitions of the Nazis were challenged during World War II. African nations had this in mind when they clamoured for independence as the “wind of change” blew across the continent in the 1960s.
The South Africans were mindful of this when they stood up against apartheid, fought and died for the irresistible and irreversible idea of freedom.
As Nelson Mandela, the former anti-apartheid icon once articulated, the ideal of a free society is one in which all people should hope to live for but, if need be, it is an ideal for which they should be prepared to die.
After all, a true tree of liberty is watered and sustained by the blood of patriots and saints. As Wilfred Owen puts it: “Dulce et decorum est pro patria mori” (It is sweet and proper to die for one’s country). The Congo’s Patrice Lumumba knew this, so did Burkina Faso’s Thomas Sankara, so did Mandela, so does Zelenskyy — and so should you.
Valery Ferim is an associate professor and interim head of the Department of Politics and Philosophy in the Faculty of Social Science and Humanities at the University of Fort Hare.
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