On Friday, Dugmore and his deputy Nomi Nkondlo briefed journalists ahead of the party’s provincial manifesto launch this weekend. During the briefing, the party made it clear it hoped to wrest control of municipalities currently held by the Democratic Alliance. 

Dugmore said the party would “expose the DA on a daily basis – we’re going to expose the issues of corruption, issues of the failure of service delivery, the racism – without fear or favour – we’re going to expose this DA for what they are and the way they failed. We will not be holding back.” 

With less than four weeks’ campaign time left, Dugmore said they wanted to unite behind removing the DA, “not only from the City of Cape Town” but from the Western Cape itself. 

There was “growing discontent” in the Western Cape with the DA over issues such as water, electricity and droughts, said Dugmore – which included working class communities and the middle class, “who are incredibly affected by the quality of services but actually the price of the water and electricity which is affecting them as well”. 

“The ANC has accepted and learnt from its shortcomings over the years and has this time ensured that it brings about credible candidates and a manifesto which demonstrates our experience over the years and a corrective path of ensuring that we govern better,” said Dugmore. 

ANC support dropped across the province in both the 2011 and 2016 municipal elections. In 2011, it received 1,374,842 votes in the Western Cape, but by the 2016 municipal election, it only received 1,205,063 votes. After the 2016 poll, the ANC won only one municipality – Laingsburg – out of 30 in the province. Five years later, ahead of the 2021 polls, the party is in control either on its own or through coalitions in eight out of the 30 municipalities in the Western Cape. 

The ANC is confident that it could make inroads in municipalities in the province this election, said Dugmore. This was based on support for the party during by-election results and smaller parties entering into coalitions with the ANC in order to govern municipalities in the province. 

When asked by journalists if the party was looking at coalitions to govern municipalities after the November polls, Dugmore said “we are not here to talk about a detailed coalition strategy… our job is to win as many votes [as we can]”. 

The party is targeting 15 non-metro municipalities, but did not identify them at the briefing. In the City of Cape Town, which the party has not governed in 15 years, Nkondlo said the party would try to “reduce” the governing DA’s presence, “something we know is very possible”. 

The ANC would be fielding “capable and credible candidates” who have been identified through a “vigorous” process within the party, said Dugmore. “We are happy that our internal vetting processes have been concluded and we have presented to the people of this province, men and women who are ready to deliver much needed services.” 

Dugmore and Nkondlo emphasised that there were still disputes over candidates being sorted out by provincial structures, following complaints and unhappiness by those affected. 

Read in Daily Maverick: ANC Western Cape: Implicated councillors will step aside and are removed from final candidates list

“The ANC has accepted and learned from its shortcomings over the years and has this time ensured that it brings about credible candidates and a manifesto which demonstrates our experience over the years and a corrective path of ensuring that we govern better,” said Dugmore. 

“Any member of the ANC who is on the list, is an ANC member in good standing,” he said. 

The party’s provincial manifesto launch will take place on Saturday, 9 October at the Samaj Centre in Gatesville, Athlone. Dugmore said the provincial manifesto will contain elements of the main manifesto, launched by ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa in Tshwane on 27 September 2021 as well as localised details for the province. DM

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