By Thapelo Molefe
The ANC on Saturday opened its first National Executive Committee (NEC) Lekgotla of 2026 in a high-stakes test of its ability to deliver ahead of this year’s local government elections, amid a deepening credibility crisis and widespread municipal failures.
The party has declared the upcoming election year “the decisive year to fix local government” and restore public confidence in service delivery where it governs.
The three-day meeting is tasked with translating President Cyril Ramaphosa’s January 8 Statement into concrete programmes with measurable outcomes, with a strong emphasis on implementation, accountability and visible service delivery.
Former ANC leaders Kgalema Motlanthe and Thabo Mbeki attended the opening session, underscoring the political weight of the gathering.
Opening the Lekgotla, Ramaphosa warned that the ANC risked losing relevance if it failed to close the gap between policy and delivery.
Citing the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC), he said South Africa’s most persistent development challenge was weak implementation rather than a lack of ideas.
“The task of this Lekgotla must be implementation,” Ramaphosa said.
“We must emerge with clear programmes, timelines, reporting mechanisms and consequence management.”
Municipal governance has emerged as the movement’s most urgent challenge.
During the 2024 general elections, South Africans delivered a stinging rebuke to the ANC, handing the party its most significant electoral setback since it came to power in 1994.
Frustration over a stagnant economy, a 32% unemployment rate, lack of service delivery and persistent corruption allegations against senior officials has raised the likelihood that voters could further turn away from the ruling party in the upcoming local elections.
Ramaphosa acknowledged that political interference, corruption, weak administration and flawed tender systems had hollowed out municipalities and eroded public trust, saying that fixing local government must be the ANC’s central priority.
“2026 must be the Year of Decisive Action to fix local government and transform the economy,” he said.
The Lekgotla also reviewed economic developments, noting four consecutive quarters of growth in 2025, South Africa’s removal from the Financial Action Task Force grey list, a sovereign credit rating upgrade and a year largely free of load shedding.
However, Ramaphosa cautioned that unemployment, inequality and crime remained stubbornly high, warning that recent gains would count for little unless they were felt by ordinary citizens.
Organisational renewal and accountability were placed at the centre of discussions, with Ramaphosa issuing a blunt warning to underperforming leaders.
“If we are given tasks and we do not perform, there is only one outcome — you either do what you are meant to do or you move out,” he warned.
He added that ANC candidates for the local elections would face stricter vetting, compulsory ethics training and tighter enforcement of accountability measures.
Speaking to the SABC earlier this week, ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula said the party was focused on ensuring councillors and local government officials addressed basic service delivery failures, including sewage spills, road maintenance and other critical services.
“We will look at the end of the year at how we have fared. Our focus is on interventions at leadership level and governance challenges in local government,” Mbalula said.
“Those interventions will intensify after the Lekgotla, following the launch of the action plan and the work already done.”
On the appointment of mayors, Mbalula told reporters on Saturday that the responsibility would rest with national officials.
“We are currently developing a framework to guide national officials in executing this mandate,” he said.
“The framework will direct how appointments are made, from mayors to ward councillors. Anyone who stands will do so under the ANC banner, but there will be elements of public participation.”
Mbalula said the party would conduct quarterly evaluations of implementation in line with resolutions of the National General Council.
“We must fix local government and ensure economic growth, based on the programme of action that will emerge from this Lekgotla. This work did not start now; it began with the councillors’ roll call,” he said.
He added that the ANC was already in a position to intervene where necessary, citing eThekwini as an example.
“We are following this up with consequence management. Sometimes it is not about removing people, but about strengthening capacity where it is needed,” Mbalula said.
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