The ANC will win an absolute majority in the 2024 elections and will not have to govern in a coalition.
This is what President Cyril Ramaphosa said in Sandton on Saturday when he answered questions in a discussion about the ANC’s election manifesto. ANC supporters will be informed about the manifesto during a meeting in Soweto on Sunday.
Asked about the kind of parties the ANC sees as allies to stay in power, the president smiled and said: “We don’t work to be in a coalition.”
“The majority of people who have always voted for the ANC still see the ANC as the only vehicle for the transformation process in the country, to consolidate and make it better.
“A lot of people don’t see anyone else doing it better.”
The ANC will be supported on the ground by the largest trade union federation in the country, the powerful Cosatu and the Communist Party (SACP).
During the last campaign in 2019, the ANC prioritized economic and social transformation, the fight against corruption, crime and the progress made since apartheid.
“We have a very different country,” he said, but added that “the shadow of apartheid still casts a shadow over everything the party has tried to do”.
Under apartheid, 36% of South Africans had access to electricity and now this figure is close to 93%, Ramaphosa said.
“This is a great achievement, but there is still a lot to do.”
Ramaphosa admitted that many voters are “bitterly critical of the ANC”.
“Innovation doesn’t happen overnight.”
ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa shares opening remarks and introduces the topics that will be discussed today.
“Since the first democratic elections in 1994, the development of the ANC’s manifesto has never been merely an internal party exercise. From the first People’s Forums,… pic.twitter.com/oy2Y64pZtn— African National Congress (@MYANC) September 2, 2023
Some of the guests in attendance are engaging with the ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa during the Q&A session. #2019ManifestoReview#BuildingABetterSouthAfrica#ANCatWork pic.twitter.com/2Vvw1kuu3R
— African National Congress (@MYANC) September 2, 2023
