Ekurhuleni – ANC second deputy secretary-general Maropene Ramokgopa has called on the party to rethink its political approach and operate more like a party competing for votes than a liberation movement.
Ramokgopa made the remarks in the City of Ekurhuleni on Tuesday during commemorations marking the 109th anniversary of the birth of former ANC president Oliver Reginald Tambo.
She said the ANC could not rely indefinitely on the methods that had served it during the struggle against apartheid, arguing that the political environment had changed significantly since the dawn of democracy in 1994.
“Of course, exile also taught the movement that survival requires adaptation. We must adapt; if we do not adapt, we will die,” Ramokgopa said.
She acknowledged the ANC’s liberation history but argued that the party needed to recognise the difference between fighting apartheid and competing in modern elections.
“Our circumstances today are fundamentally different, and we must not equate our challenges with the repression of apartheid, but the principle holds: methods that served us in one period cannot be assumed to be sufficient in the next,” she said.
“What we must understand and always carry forward is that we are now a political party and this transition, comrades, is very difficult because we know ourselves and have always organised ourselves to be a liberation movement.”
[WATCH] ANC 2nd DSG, Cde Maropene Ramokgop delivers memorial lecture for OR Tambo https://t.co/vvTNzfD8ht
— ANC – African National Congress (@MYANC) October 27, 2026
Ramokgopa said the ANC’s strategies over the past three decades had not adequately prepared it for the demands of electoral politics.
“We have to go out there to be a political party that must now win elections,” she said.
She added that the organisation had not fully adapted to the requirements of a modern political party and needed new ideas and systems to remain competitive.
“We have not really adapted properly into what exactly a political party needs to do,” Ramokgopa said.
She called on the ANC to assess South Africa’s changing socio-economic conditions, as well as developments globally, to understand its place in the current political landscape.
“The balance of forces means: where are we, where are we in this revolution, the National Democratic Revolution (NDR) that we are pushing? Domestically, where are we?” she asked.
Her remarks come as the ANC faces mounting pressure to rebuild voter support after losing its parliamentary majority in the 2024 national elections and entering a coalition government.
The party is also preparing for the local government elections scheduled for 4 November, with voter confidence and its performance in government among the issues likely to shape its electoral prospects.
Beyond electoral strategy, Ramokgopa raised concerns about divisions within the ANC, saying internal tensions and factional battles were undermining the organisation.
“The tension, you can actually take a knife and cut it – you know exactly where to cut. It cannot be. That is not what the ANC should be about,” she said.
She urged members not to place personal political ambitions ahead of the party’s interests.
Ramokgopa also defended the ANC’s role in South African politics, saying it remained central to the country’s future.
“As a matter of fact, the ANC is the only thing that our people own,” she said.
However, she acknowledged that the organisation was facing difficulties and said it needed to confront its problems honestly.
“When an organisation is in difficulty, it is tempting to treat criticism as a threat to cohesion,” she said.
Her comments suggest that the ANC’s renewal efforts must involve more than defending its liberation history. The party, she argued, needs to change how it organises, competes for votes and addresses the concerns of South Africans.
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Compiled by Glaan Sibuyi
