Cape Town – The ANC Veterans League has proposed a major change to how party leaders are elected, advocating that every ordinary member should vote for senior leadership — not just party delegates — in a bid to renew the party’s internal democracy.
According to IOL, the league has called for sweeping reforms to the party’s election system, suggesting that all card-carrying members be allowed to vote directly for the organisation’s national leadership, including the powerful National Executive Committee (NEC).
At the ANC’s National General Council in Boksburg, the league argued that the current delegate-based system is vulnerable to manipulation, patronage, and factionalism. Veteran leader Febe Potgieter-Gqubule told delegates that the party needed a modernised and more accountable system.
“Every ANC member should have the right to vote for an ANC leader and the NEC,” she said, according to IOL. “We have had widespread discussion among the structures, and many have come forward with concrete proposals. One of them is the need for direct elections.”
As reported by TimesLIVE, the push aligns with growing internal calls for renewal, with Gauteng leaders among the most vocal supporters. Provincial coordinator Panyaza Lesufi told the publication that direct elections would eliminate the distorting power of money and factional deal-making at conferences.
WATCH | ANC Veterans’ League president Dr Snuki Zikalala calls for the ANC constitution to be amended so that members who are criminally charged must step aside immediately, including from representing the party in Parliament. pic.twitter.com/LjujDMBE89
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“All members of the ANC must vote for who must be president,” the report quoted Lesufi as saying.
“No one is going to buy all of us, and no one is going to abuse delegates anymore.”
But the proposal has not landed smoothly across the party.
Some ANC leaders — particularly from smaller provinces — fear that popular figures from larger regions would dominate leadership contests, leaving capable but less well-known members behind.
One senior KwaZulu-Natal leader told the publication, “Members who are capable but come from a small province will still be left out because they are unknown, despite being capable individuals.”
Others raised concerns about capacity and logistics. several branches have not discussed the idea at all and that rolling out a national, membership-wide election for nearly 80 NEC positions would be a significant administrative challenge.
An ANC member who requested anonymity warned, “We have neither the capacity nor the resources to implement such a proposal. It sounds good, but our branches are not ready.”
Still, supporters of the reform say the ANC cannot ignore the public frustration over internal battles, corruption allegations and declining legitimacy.
Backers believe that handing voting power directly to members could help reposition the organisation as transparent and people-centred at a time when confidence in political parties is waning.
Snuki Zikalala, the president of the ANC’s Veterans’ League, says the priority on their radar is the issue of the Step-aside rule, especially how it affects members of the ANC who are serving in government.
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Compiled by Lisabeal Nqamqhele
