A small ANC branch in Limpopo said it has taken a decision to endorse Ramaphosa’s brother-in-law and business mogul Patrice Motsepe for the top position.  

The Ward 12 branch in Mandagshoek outside Burgersfort resolved to endorse Motsepe’s name during a Branch General Meeting on Tuesday, because among the current presidential candidates, “none is equal to the task”, according to branch chairperson, Mabushe Makolana.

The branch was following a move by a group of aggrieved party members known as ‘Unity 2022’ who had decided that incumbent ANC President Cyril Ramaphosa has failed to get rid of factions, unite and restore the image of the embattled ANC and the Phala Phala scandal hanging over his head. As a result, he must be shown the door when the party heads to its elective conference in December.

Among the presidential candidates is Ramaphosa himself who seeks re-election, former health minister Dr Zweli Mkhize and Cogta minister Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.   

The Limpopo Provincial Executive committee  has already endorsed Ramaphosa for a second term as president.

But Makolana said: “The ANC is in a serious crisis, we are not against Ramaphosa but all we are saying is that to rescue the party will take a lot including having someone credible, with a clean reputation at the top.

“Motsepe has made a tremendous contribution to the country, he is a neutral figure, is not aligned with any faction and is trusted even outside our borders, that is the kind of leadership the ANC needs right now,” he told Daily Maverick. 

Makolana said the meeting was robust as members expressed their frustration at the state in which the ANC finds itself.  

“The general consensus is that he is the right man for the job, we have faith in him.”    

The ANC constitution states that a person must have been a member in good standing of the ANC for at least 10 years before she or he can be nominated for election to the party’s highest decision-making body, the national executive committee.  

The branch said it had verified that Motsepe had been a good member in standing and had alerted him of their intention to endorse him in December.  

Although the branch only qualifies in sending one delegate to the conference, Makolana said, “I wish the delegates can wake up and smell the coffee and put the country first.” 

Speaking about Motsepe’s contribution to the country, Makolana cited several generous donations he had made during the Covid-19 pandemic and the KwaZulu-Natal floods.  

Motsepe has also made generous contributions to the cash-strapped party which has been struggling to pay some staffers’ salaries for a while, owing in part to the Political Party Funding Act which restricts the amount of money each party can receive annually. 

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Disclosures of the amounts donated to South African political parties between April and June 2021 revealed that in times of need, the ANC continues to rely on three financial sources: the ANC’s investment arm Chancellor House, billionaire Patrice Motsepe and Ramaphosa’s personal fortune, Daily Maverick reported.  

ANC and ActionSA biggest recipients of donations in second set of party funding disclosures

Taken together, those three sources contributed R21,219,969 to the ANC’s pre-election coffers, with by far the largest portion (R15-million) coming from Chancellor House.  

The call for Motsepe to become SA’s next president was first made by a group of aggrieved ANC members known as Unity 2022 Forum, in December 2021, TimesLIVE reported. 

At the time, the group warned that if the ANC did not change its faces going into the conference, it risked having its electoral support dip below over 40% in the 2024 national elections.   

Read analysis by Stephen Grootes here:

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Spokesperson for the group, Emmanuel Makgoga, echoed similar sentiments on Wednesday after the party suffered major losses in the local elections by losing control of several metros, including Johannesburg. 

“We are not necessarily against President Ramaphosa, but we are thinking of the future of the movement. He did what he could, and we believe now it is time to give someone neutral a chance,” he said.  

“Motsepe has a proven record of being a caring leader who shares his wealth with South Africans, he has no record of corruption and can save the ANC in the upcoming 2024 elections,” said Makgoga.   

Attempts to reach Motsepe through his foundation were unsuccessful at the time of publishing this report.

Makgoga, however, said the organisation had engaged him on the matter. 

“To tell you the truth, he indicated that he is not interested in running for any leadership position, but that’s how businessmen and politicians operate, they look at the atmosphere and numbers before making any pronouncements.” 

Although the Limpopo province was the first to declare support for Ramaphosa’s re-election, the branch said it was exercising its right by opposing the view.  

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The group further said it did not dwell much on who it would endorse for the remaining top five positions and was open to persuasion, saying it is mainly concerned with the face of the ANC ahead of the elections.  

The ANC’s conference is less than two months away, but the party has not yet managed to complete nominations ahead of time. The initial closing date for all branches to have nominated their preferred candidates was 25 October, but this had to be extended to 7 November.

ANC Limpopo Spokesperson, Machaka Mathole confirmed to Daily Maverick on Wednesday that he had heard about the nomination in Ward 12.  “It remains unclear if the nomination purported in the public sphere is a true outcome of the BGM. You are well aware that after the closure of BGMs, it’s only Election Body can open the nomination forms and consolidate them … I am unable to confirm or deny the outcomes of the said BGM.” DM