Cape Town – ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has admitted that the party has been infiltrated by “criminal elements and cartels,” insisting that while some members are corrupt, the entire organisation should not be judged by them.
He was speaking during a press briefing on Thursday.
Mbalula said “comrade tsotsis” have always existed within the movement, but the ANC will never tolerate such individuals.
“We know that our organisation has been infiltrated by criminal elements and it extends to cartels sometimes not in the knowledge of comrades who are in positions of leadership. So they become victims of these criminals. If this is the moment to get rid of some of them, let it be,” Mbalula said.
“Let every member of the ANC learn from this ordeal that we must be alert, on the lookout for comrade tsotsis. Even in the days of the struggle we had comrade tsotsis.
[WATCH] ANC cannot and will not associate itself with individuals who are involved in illegal activities. If they are members, they must face the full might of the law. #ThePeoplesMovement pic.twitter.com/fIFLGKT2r1
— ANC SECRETARY GENERAL | Fikile Mbalula (@MbalulaFikile) October 2, 2025
“We were involved in the struggle we went to jail; we were tortured by the boers but there were others who were thugs, looting and doing everything in the townships in the name of the struggle. We said no, not in our name.
Mbalula distanced the party from businessman Brown Mogotsi, implicated in the Madlanga Commission for alleged criminal links, saying the ANC “will never associate” with such figures.
He also confirmed that suspended police minister Senzo Mchunu will face the ANC’s integrity commission, while several other top figures — including the late ambassador Nathi Mthethwa and former police minister Bheki Cele — have been tied to interference in police matters.
ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula says Police Minister and NEC member Senzo Mchunu will appear before the party’s integrity commission. Mchunu is accused of having links to criminal cartels, which allegedly infiltrated the country’s criminal justice system. Mbalula says the… pic.twitter.com/LO8xv8k9JU
— Newzroom Afrika (@Newzroom405) October 2, 2025
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Compiled by Betha Madhomu
