Careerism is a &#x2018cancer&#x2019: Mabuyane cautions against using the ANC for personal gain

Eastern Cape ANC chairperson Oscar Mabuyane criticised “careerism” as a “cancer” in the party,warning against members seeking personal gain.

Tebogo Letsie/City Press

Eastern Cape ANC chairperson Oscar Mabuyane denounces “careerism” as harmful to the party,criticising those seeking affiliation for personal gain.Mabuyane emphasises strengthening branches for societal development.Addressing alleged provincial tensions,he has stressed the importance of inclusivity and maturity in leadership to maintain unity within the ANC.Eastern Cape ANC chairperson Oscar Mabuyane has denounced “careerism”,saying that it’s harmful to the party,and criticising those seeking affiliation for personal gain.

Instead,with the ANC’s provincial elective conference scheduled for March,he emphasised strengthening branches for societal development.

Addressing alleged tensions in the province,Mabuyane stressed the importance of inclusivity and maturity to maintain unity within the ANC,and described careerism as a “cancer”.

In an interview with News24,Mabuyane expressed concern about a growing culture among members who viewed affiliation with the ANC as a means to wealth rather than a commitment to its values and objectives.

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He underscored the party’s efforts to strengthen administrative practices at the provincial level to ensure that registered members were both accountable and aligned with the organisation’s mission.

He said:

The ANC only exists in the branches of the ANC. Leaders are just leading,so you’ve got to get it right at that societal level and focus it there.

“So,we are doing a lot of work around that.”

Mabuyane added: “You will see the rise in membership because this is another phenomenon that we have learnt to experience,that when you go to conferences,the branches are becoming more active,and we don’t want to have branches of conferences.

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“We want branches that must serve the society,branches that must help us to advance the national democratic revolution,branches that must understand the aims and objectives of the ANC,branches that must appreciate the Freedom Charter,which is an anchor,an overarching framework of our policy development.”

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Mabuyane’s sentiments align with secretary-general Fikile Mbalula’s criticism of branch activity ahead of conferences.

‘The biggest cancer’

He said:

We are dealing with careerism. It’s the biggest cancer that we are grappling with because there are people who believe that if you want your life to be better quickly,you must be elected in the ANC.

He also cautioned against members using the ANC as a means to advance personal business interests,saying: “There are other people who want to come into the ANC in order to run their businesses. Yes,the ANC is a multi-class organisation. It allows everybody,communists,capitalists,and everybody else.

“But when you are in the ANC,you must understand the overall objective interest of the ANC is to develop this country,is to build a united country,to build a non-racial,non-sexist and democratic society for its prosperity. So if you don’t focus on that,you focus on self-aggrandisement,on personal interest.”

Leadership and alleged Eastern Cape tensions

On the issue of leadership dynamics within the province,Mabuyane dismissed claims of disunity as overblown,attributing pre-conference tensions to the democratic nature of the organisation.

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Recent reports suggested that differences between Mabuyane and provincial secretary Lulama Ngcukayitobi centred around Mabuyane’s aspiration for a third term as chairperson while Ngcukayitobi was reportedly seeking the same position.

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Not directly addressing the alleged tensions between him and Ngcukayitobi,Mabuyane emphasised that unity and dialogue remained crucial in addressing such challenges.

“It’s not a question of disunity...It’s people believing in different perspectives,and we’ve got to understand that and accept it,” he said.

He underscored the importance of maturity and inclusivity in leadership,cautioning against people who exploited elective victories to alienate members of the ANC.

“The problem that we have in the ANC,” Mabuyane warned,“is to elect people who will lack that maturity,people who will come into office and start chasing other people simply because they were not supporting them.”