ANC elective conference adjourns after Ramaphosa’s speech

The start of the five-yearly gathering was delayed by more than six hours due to registration glitches. That meant plans for other officials to present reports on the state of the party and its finances, and to seek additional nominations for leadership posts from the conference floor were postponed until Saturday.

Ramaphosa, who is running for a second term as ANC leader, acknowledged the myriad challenges the country is facing, including rampant unemployment, low levels of economic growth, continuing corruption and frequent power outages.

It was unacceptable, he said, that a quarter of the population lives below the food poverty line.

Ramaphosa warns of corruption crackdown (Dec. 16, 6:15 p.m.)
Ramaphosa described those who were guilty of state capture, a term used to describe the mass looting of state funds during his predecessor’s Jacob Zuma nine-year rule, as “anti-democratic and anti-revolutionary” but didn’t name anyone. “Whoever they are and wherever they are, they will be held responsible,” he said, while looking in Zuma’s direction.

The president’s speech was interrupted by delegates from KwaZulu-Natal province who want him to be replaced by the province’s former premier, Zweli Mkhize. They sang songs in support of Zuma, who was forced to step down as president in 2018 after being implicated in a succession of scandals, questioning what he had done wrong.

Pace of land reform too slow, Ramaphosa says (Dec. 16, 6 p.m.)
The ANC resolved at its last national conference in 2017 to change the constitution to make it easier for the state to take land without paying for it, but its plans required backing from two-thirds of lawmakers and were derailed by the opposition. The pace of land reform remains too slow and the ANC is pursuing other avenues to address racially skewed ownership patterns, Ramaphosa said.

“Since the advent of democracy, government has transferred over 4 million hectares of land through restitution and over 5 million hectares through redistribution, accounting for nearly 11% of commercial farmland,” he said. “This is far below the initial target of 30% by 2014.”

South Africa returning to firmer fiscal footing: Ramaphosa (Dec. 16, 5:28 p.m.)
Ramaphosa said the implementation of the government’s sound macro-economic reform agenda, better tax collection and positive terms of trade should provide confidence that the country’s fiscal position should return to a firmer footing in the medium-term. A drive to attract more foreign investment that began in 2018 was also delivering fruit, he said.

“The macroeconomic stability we have fostered has given us a strong platform to enable the economy to grow going forward,” he said.

Ramaphosa reiterates commitment to National Health Insurance (Dec. 16, 5:25 p.m.)
Ramaphosa reiterated the ANC’s commitment to implementing national health insurance, which will standardize healthcare for South Africans, regardless of their ability to pay. He also spoke out about the need to redistribute wealth and improve access to services, while respecting the nation’s constitution.

“The constitution remains the foundation of our democratic order and the guarantor of the rights of all South Africans,” he said. “We should resist the populist rhetoric which seeks to lay the blame for lack of transformation and poor service delivery on the constitutional protections and safeguards that ultimately protect us and future generations.”

Charges dropped against ANC members who failed to toe party line (Dec. 16, 9 a.m.)
The ANC’s National Executive Committee on Thursday halted disciplinary proceedings against five party members, including Cooperative Governance and Traditional Affairs Minister Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, who narrowly lost to Ramaphosa in the contest to lead the ANC in 2017.

The five were set to be disciplined for ignoring a party instruction to reject a proposal to initiate impeachment proceedings against Ramaphosa in parliament on Tuesday.

The decision means that Dlamini-Zuma can contest for the presidency of the ANC if she obtains sufficient nominations from the floor at the conference.

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