African National Congress (ANC) secretary general, Fikile Mbalula says the party remains confident in the newly appointed KwaZulu-Natal Provincial Task Team, despite losing three wards to the uMkhonto weSizwe (MK) Party in recent by-elections.
Mbalula was addressing the media during his engagement with the Provincial Task Team in Durban. The meeting is aimed at evaluating the progress made with the ongoing organisational renewal and rebuilding efforts in the province after its electoral defeat last year.
Under the newly appointed leadership, which is barely three months old, the ANC has lost ward 2 in Richmond, ward 28 in KwaDukuza and ward 18 in Mandeni. Mbalula says while they are concerned about losing the important wards, there is progress.
“We have lost, and we did not camouflage this loss in here in KwaZulu-Natal. We are a 17% party, and we need to get out of that. We have been working on a program of renewal and a comeback. Is it the end, is it working up to this far? It is, there are sparkles of good work that have been done. And I’m not over. Defensive to say that no, we are winning and everything is hunky-dory, we are not concerned. We have lost the important wards of the ANC from members of the ANC who left the ANC, joining the opposition, and one important word. But equally, the ANC has also made strides,”
Mbalula says the party’s main focus in KwaZulu-Natal is to strengthen its structures on the ground, restoring unity, credibility, and trust in the party.
“We are here to look into our house, not to blame anybody, but to reorganise a well-disciplined machinery which has been well led up until this far. We have reinforced our leadership; we have reconfigured it, and we are here as the secretary general’s office to do what we say we do, to monitor into work with the province to improve the standing of the ANC. But at the same time, to sharpen the machinery of the African National Congress.”
