'TIME TO GO'
ANC veteran of 60 years Mavuso Msimang ‘painfully’ severs ties, tenders devastating resignation
Mavuso Msimang, deputy president of the African National Congress Veterans’ League (ANCVL), has resigned from the party after more than 60 years. Msimang said in his devastating three-page resignation letter, the transcript published in full below, that 'For several years now, the ANC has been wracked by endemic corruption, with devastating consequences on the governance of the country and the lives of poor people, of whom there continue to be so many.'
A letter dated 6 December 2023 was made public on various social media channels late last night. A trusted source confirmed to Daily Maverick shortly before midnight that the letter was indeed authentic.
Msimang said in his devastating three-page resignation letter, the transcript published in full below, that “For several years now, the ANC has been wracked by endemic corruption, with devastating consequences on the governance of the country and the lives of poor people, of whom there continue to be so many.”
Msimang questions incidents of children drowning in pit latrines, raw sewage flowing into rivers, over a hundred people dying in the Life Esidimeni tragedy, people dying waiting for ambulances and businesses failing while “ANC leaders publicly proclaim ownership of obscenely wealthy homesteads and other possessions, and send their children to the best schools in the land”.
Msimang goes on to say that the “dramatic decline in the organisation’s popularity is attributable to widely held perceptions that its members and ‘deployees’ are corrupt, that the organisation has a high tolerance threshold for venality, and that the deployment of unsuitable people accounts for the government’s deplorable levels of service to the public.”
He ends his letter: “Consequently, I have come to the realisation that my time and energies would be better spent elsewhere. Even as I painfully sever ties with my once glorious organisation, I shall continue to keep a vigil over any and all matters pertaining to governance in the country. It is not easy to leave an organisation that continues to be home to some of the most dedicated individuals I have had the good fortune, honour and privilege to call comrades. But it is time to go.”
ANC Veterans’ League President Snuki Zikalala released confirmation shortly after midnight that Msimang had resigned.
“Regrettably, Cde Mavuso Msimang, the Deputy President of the ANCVL, has decided to resign from the ANC. His resignation is acknowledged,” said Zikalala.
Zikalala said it was “equally regrettable that the Secretary-General of the ANC has made allegations against the Veterans’ League that we are undermining the ANC”.
“As the ANCVL, we have and will continue to raise issues of corruption internally in the organisation. Further, we will continue to engage at provincial and national levels in the list processes to take a stand against individuals who are implicated in corrupt activities, including those fingered by the Zondo Commission, being part of election lists for provincial and national legislatures,” he said.
Zikalala rejected earlier allegations “that by doing this, we are undermining the ANC. We believe this is the only path to renew the ANC and restore the legitimacy of the ANC in the eyes of the people.
“We continue to believe that the ANC is the only organisation that can best take forward the interests of the poor, and is committed to our constitutional democracy, including the Bill of Rights and the rule of law.
“As the ANCVL, we will remain committed to bringing back the integrity and dignity of the organisation, and win the coming elections with a resounding victory.”
On Wednesday afternoon, during a press briefing, party Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula said the veterans league was decampaigning the party instead of using its direct line to the party’s leadership to discuss their concerns.
“On a daily basis they have led a charge against the organisation. We as the leadership are available if they wish to make a call, we will avail ourselves. In a couple of days, it will be the first anniversary of this leadership. While there are a number of issues that have been raised, which have not been addressed, they are on the agenda,” he said.
Msimang’s resignation will be a blow to the ANC, which is desperately struggling to hold on to any chance to retain power in next year’s national elections. Msimang, who spent many years in exile, served in the armed wing of the ANC’s Umkhonto weSizwe in the 1960s and was the then banned organisation’s Chief of Communications.
While in exile, Msimang worked for, among others, the United Nations and Care International. He returned to South Africa with his family shortly before the 1994 elections and was later appointed to several positions including Head of SA Tourism, CEO of the State Information Technology Agency and the Director-General in the Department of Home Affairs. He was voted in as the Veteran’s League deputy president earlier this year.
The full transcript of Mavuso Msimang’s resignation letter is published below:
“Dear Secretary General
Letter of resignation
It is with profound sadness that I inform you of my decision to terminate my membership of the African National Congress (ANC). I have served the organisation loyally and diligently for over six decades.
For several years now, the ANC has been wracked by endemic corruption, with devastating consequences on the governance of the country and the lives of poor people, of whom there continue to be so many.
Of course, the ANC did not invent corruption. We inherited a state that was morally bankrupt and that was built on the most profound forms of corruption. When we took over government in 1994, we had the moral high ground, and the conviction that we would be able to root out the old-boy networks that had benefited from, and strangled, the apartheid economy.
Yet, three decades later, the ANC’s own track record of corruption is a cause of great shame. The corruption we once decried is now part of our movement’s DNA. This has had dire consequences for the most vulnerable members of our society.
Over four million people live in shacks that are euphemistically referred to as ‘informal settlements’. And in every town, there are people whom we call beggars, who collect at traffic lights and in town squares. They are not beggars of course, for that is not their identity. They are human beings who have been forced to sacrifice their dignity in part because of my party’s successive failures. We are an organisation that purports to create a better life for all.
A new black middle class has grown and developed, which is commendable. However, this middle class is leaving behind people who die before ambulances can reach them, or perish in the hallways of overflowing, under-resourced public hospitals.
As ANC leaders publicly proclaim ownership of obscenely wealthy homesteads and other possessions and send their children to the best schools in the land, there are still many South Africans whose children continue to be exposed to the risk of dropping into pit latrines in poorly equipped public schools and dying horrendous and humiliating deaths. There are children in rural areas who miss classes when streams and rivers are in flood because there are no bridges.
How does it come about that raw sewage flows into the uMngeni River and into the sea, polluting eThekwini beaches that have been a traditional holiday destination for black people from inland provinces, some of whom used to travel from as far north as Limpopo, Northwest, Mpumalanga, etc? For what earthly reason did the Gauteng Department of Health think that frail, elderly, and very vulnerable people should be sent into ill-equipped, ill-prepared and ill-funded houses under the guise of unqualified NGOs resulting in the death of some 160 people as happened in the Esidimeni Life scandal?
Businesses are failing, downsizing or simply deciding not to invest anymore in our country where the environment has become entirely disabling for them. As a result, thousands of jobs are being lost at a time when the unemployment rate rages north of 32 percent and 60 percent for persons aged between 15 and 24 years. Inexplicably, you have ministers who attack the very private sector the President is inviting to be an essential “part of a social compact in a programme to rebuild our economy and enable higher growth”.
You do not need to dig too deeply to discover that most of the country’s failures are linked to corruption somewhere in the system: a tender that should never have been awarded, a job that should have gone to a better qualified, more deserving and less factionally aligned person. This is happening on the watch of the ANC government.
An Eskom brought to its knees by high-level corruption and sabotage has literally rendered the nation powerless and all too often left it in the dark. Transnet’s mismanagement has derailed its freight haulage system. In consequence, road transporters who have stepped into the breach sometimes have to wait in 40km-long queues, while belching noxious gases into the atmosphere, because ports are congested. The resulting demurrage charges are inevitably, ultimately borne by the consumer. And the worst may yet happen: ships simply avoiding our ports and discharging their cargo in better-run ports elsewhere.
The litany of economic and social woes – crime, unemployment, destitution – associated with my beloved African National Congress is not only embarrassing, but also defies enumeration.
It is a matter of public record that for over a decade I have added my voice to many others that have consistently decried and disapproved of corruption and its harmful by-products of nepotism and incompetence. The response of the leadership to this constructive censure has, at best, been a shoulder shrug and a promise to do something about it; at worst those who seek change by raising voices endure slurs, or are met with downright hostility.
Despite the failures of the ANC and the manifold malfeasances referred-to above, I am heartened that the South African spirit is alive and well. It is evident in the entrepreneurs found in every township and community who manage to survive despite the barriers. You see it when you look at organisations like Gift of the Givers, which has become a global force for good. It is demonstrated in the creative talent of a new generation that is earning accolades on stages in every genre from opera to photography and comedy. And who cannot notice the wonder of Amapiano, whose pioneers are generating joy and resources with their uniquely South African outlook?
Alas, despite these and other glimmering flashes of positivity, the ANC is on the verge of losing power. This is not because Ezulweni Investments, a small company from Newcastle, got a writ of attachment against the ANC for R150 million, and the high court sheriff has been to Luthuli House to attach immovable property. It is because, as its own pollsters have warned, the ANC is currently falling significantly short of securing outright victory during next year’s elections. This dramatic decline in the organisation’s popularity is attributable to widely held perceptions that its members and ‘deployees’ are corrupt, that the organisation has a high tolerance threshold for venality, and that the deployment of unsuitable people accounts for the government’s deplorable levels of service to the public.
To address these societal perceptions, the ANC Veterans’ League, in a resolution passed at its conference and in decisions subsequently taken at the league’s successive National Executive Committee meetings, urged the leadership of the organisation to ensure that members who have been accused of criminality or recommended for referral to criminal justice institutions by commissions set up to investigate corruption, should not be allowed to continue in office. The Veterans’ League specifically recommended that such individuals be considered ineligible for nomination to represent the ANC in the 2024 national and provincial elections. Unfortunately, the ANC NEC has shown no urgency to deal with this matter.
Consequently, I have come to the realisation that my time and energies would be better spent elsewhere. Even as I painfully sever ties with my once glorious organisation, I shall continue to keep a vigil over any and all matters pertaining to governance in the country.
It is not easy to leave an organisation that continues to be home to some of the most dedicated individuals I have had the good fortune, honour and privilege to call comrades. But it is time to go.
Sincere regards,
Mavuso Msimang
Citizen of South Africa
6 December 2023″
Msimang was until last year a member of the ANC National Executive Committee, but did not stand for re-election to the NEC at the party’s 55th National Conference in 2022.
During the third national conference of the African National Congress Veterans’ League held in July 2023, Msimang was elected unopposed as deputy president of the league.
ANC responds
In a statement on Thursday, ANC spokesperson Mahlengi Bhengu-Motsiri acknowledged Msimang’s resignation, adding that party president Cyril Ramaphosa, along with other members of the top seven, have always availed themselves for counsel and direction by veterans and stalwarts.
The party, however, continued to express concerns about the recent utterances by members of the Veterans League.
“Comrade Msimang is a dedicated stalwart who devoted six decades of his life to the ANC and the cause of freedom. His contributions remain invaluable to this day. Further, as contained in our previous statements about public spats involving leaders and members, we reiterate our call on the veterans of the ANC to stop de-campaigning the ANC and work through the structures of the organisation,” Bhengu-Motsiri said.
“The ANC is committed towards the fulfilment of the 55th Conference resolutions on renewal and unity of the movement, including discipline. There is sufficient evidence of the strides that are being made in this regard.”
This is a developing story. DM
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If the ANC prevents corrupt members from participating in party activities, there would be nobody left to participate.
Ramaphosa keeps Cele appointed so that nobody investigates Ramaposer or the ANC.
I applaud Mavuso Msimang for his courageous step! Any member of the governing party who still has a thread of moral fiber left in them should follow in his footsteps and resign. The ANC is rotten to the core and has left the country in ruins. Get out and use your skills and talents in a more effective way. The ANC is like a pot full of holes. Anything you try to achieve in there just seeps right out again. You are wasting your energy!
It would have been nice if he said that people must change RSA by voting against the EFF and ANC.
Get it translated into the 10 other official languages and get it out into non-English speaking communities. If necessary summarise it.
Be realistic!
Pfft, only now you speak out… “for the last several years”… Yeah, the last 30 years.
You said nothing when Mbeki and Mango killed 1000’s with their denialism. Nothing when Zuma sold the country for a plate of curry…
Save it, you only “resigned” because YOUR nose is no longer in the trough.
You clearly have not been following Msimang or even read the resignation letter. Had you done so you would realise how inaccurate and unfortunate your remark is
I agree with you Simon.
Fair comment.
Corry’s letter shows hatred which never got anyone anywhere.
How about being rational?
Hear , Hear…plan denial with dark-shorts from the past…
Written in a manner and with a passion that none of us outside the organisation could even begin to approach. I applaud Mr Msimang, who has long been one of the few remaining voices of reason and compassion within the ANC. Their loss is wider society’s gain, as I sense he will be working with some of the new, more genuinely transformative socio-political formations in seeking the mandate to turn the country around and put it on the path that its wonderful people deserve. Thank you, Mr Msimang
Well put Lawrence, what an amazing man who I admit, I knew nothing about him but am keen to learn more about him.
Amazing man Gordon. Look up African Parks
Well said. My heart & my thanks go out to Dr Msimang. I can’t begin to understand how painful it must be for him to resign from an organisation to which he has dedicated over 6 decades of his life. Whereas I may not have always agreed with ANC ideology I never once questioned the charachter & values of its elder Statesmen & Women. The timing of Dr Msimangs resignation is perhaps also significant; coming on the 10th Anniversary of the death of former President Mandela.
This is not a moment any of us should celebrate. It’s the act of a Man who has been robbed of hope & belief & whose sacrifice & legacy has been spat on!
The Veterans League is not guilty of de-campaigning (whatever that means) its fight has consistently been to save the Soul of the ANC – it is people like Mbalula who have trashed it
Absolutely!
Snuki still there as Vetrans League Head…..scruples?
Sad news. The extract from his letter is so true:
When we took over government in 1994, we had the moral high ground, and the conviction that we would be able to root out the old-boy networks that had benefited from, and strangled, the apartheid economy.
The ANC just took over those networks and exponentially increased them. I hope for a day when whatever Mbalula says, does not make the news.
We need leaders like this. May more of them be brave enough to act on and voice their concerns. Spin doctoring strategies have run their course and don’t impress anyone anymore.
What this article fails to mention is that Mavuso Msimang was a genuine freedom fighter. He participated in raids made by Umkhonto we Sizwe in the 1960s which, though unsuccessful, were very brave. Bravery and service as a humble but brilliant servant of the people, in various roles, characterise his principled life. He was neither an opportunist nor a showman. It is so sad that he has felt compelled to make this decision.
Not sad at all. A glimmer of hope.
It’s a pity that Cde Msimanga has opted to resign when heading for the elections which is so crucial and yet he is one of those who were pushing to install the current President the timing is wrong, we still love the ANC of Oliver Tambo, we will fight corruption from within. He should have not supported the CR17 campaign of which now we are hearing some current Ministers received many millions of rands from, billionaires who are in the leadership of the ANC are failing to even donate funds to rescue the organization from being sued it shows clearly the agenda is to finish off the ANC completely. Cde Msimanga should have fought from within until he is expelled, the Phala Phala saga will continue haunting the ANC
Regretfully we see no sign of the ANC leadership “fighting corruption from within”. Ninety percent of the ANC seems to be corrupt or inept or both.
This ANC is beyond redemption: it is corrupt, clueless, venal and self-serving. There isn’t a single member of the ANC in a position of power, at any level, that you can look at and say that they’re noble, working tirelessly for the country and doing great things. Not one. Just look at the state of the country, it is 100% the fault of the ANC and its corrupt rulers.
So are you suggesting that it would have been better if NDZ won the elections? Sounds like it. It’s amazing how the super-corrupt cable of the anc have harped on about Phala Phala, as if Ramaphosa is worse than Zuma. Ramaphosa may be useless, but he isn’t a fraction of the common thief that Zuma is…
Being an ersatz billionaire he didn’t need to go the Zuma route. There is nothing honourable about Ramaphosa: at best, he’s out of his depth and a spineless stooge in the internal power battles in the ANC; at worst, he’s a fig leaf for those power battles and doesn’t give a damn about South Africa. Ramaphosa offers South Africa nothing, other than not being Zuma.
And where do you think Ramaphosa got his billions?
Intercepting gold mining rights and ensuring that it gets renewed in his companies names together with Patrice Motsepe. Ask Bobby Godsell.
That’s who I was referring to as an ersatz billionaire…
Occasional spontaneous remissions notwithstanding, cancers rarely cures themselves. The ANC’s corruption cancer is Stage IV and metastatic.
This is how a true leader ages and matures, with dignity , integrity and honesty, no matter the consequences
What a courageous man as he is now going to be ostracized by the anc for speaking teh truth.
The problem is he is one of few
I don’t think so, not even by Ramaphosa
Bravo, I salute your honour and I thank you for sharing what must have been a tremendously painful experience for you with us. Today I feel hopeful. Today I feel warmth from your humbling integrity. Today I am grateful.
Hear, hear!
He must be so very disappointed!
Thank you for your empathy and courage in coming to this decision after such a long time as a loyal ANC supporter. Sadly the Party has let all its veterans and loyal supporters down entirely
Sadly, the veterans league who are the only voice of morality and principle in the ANC are ageing and passing on, much to the delight of the ANC cadres who dislike their stance intensely as it points out their corruption and failings.
¡híoles de frijoles! an ANC cadre with a backbone. Could this amazing admission be the start of a genuine period of self-criticism as opposed to the usual introspective guff that these hopeless cadres harp on about whilst stuffing their three piece suites full of ill gotten boodle. Ramaposeur should take a leaf from this gentleman’s book, necessarily the one titled: “Backbone and where to find it”.
If the ANC does to you what apartheid did to you then do to the ANC what you did to apartheid – to paraphrase a wise man: ditch it! Takes a lot more than courage for a veteran to speak so plainly full frontal like this : disillusioned, disempowered, disenfranchised, all words that describe what ANC does to its members, our people and especially the poor.
And the anc couldn’t care less about this resignation. The response from foxol mbalula says it all – they will continue feeding at the taxpayer’s trough until the country dies of hunger.
Thank you Mavuso. I, as an older white man whose politics is somewhere in the middle of the field – DA ish, gave one of my votes in 1994 to the ANC. Our current situation is nothing to do with colour or even politics, but the fact that the ANC has been stolen (along with everything else) by a group of blatant, shameless criminals. Next year is our last chance, and men like you will be a vital part in helping recue our country
This different in character between this fine brave gentleman, and that prince of clowns Mbalula is astounding.
This is courageous and commendable. But, as with the Titanic, unlikely to stop the looting or change the ultimate outcome.
I salute you Mr Msimang. I am sorry that you had to take this stand. Your letter is excellently put.
A comprehensive indictment of the current ANC leadership echelon and brave action from a man who will know the intimate details behind the actions of many of these individuals….. and precisely how the country has arrived at it’s current state.
Politics aside, it gives the rest of us encouragement as we rebuild South Africa ….. and lends credence to the truism ‘We are a failed state, but NOT a failed society’.
Let there be many more citizens like Mavuso Msimang to tell it like it is, we must build on what we’ve got, not wish/hope for. Thank you Sir.
He did not just resign, he terminated his membership with the ANC – that is resounding
Well said, Mr.Msimang! I admire your courage.
To leave what is one’s emotional home after 60 years takes so much courage. In reality it is probably the only thing that will bring this corrupt government down. The example that is set by people of integrity is hard to ignore. Let us hope that the few remaining honest and decent people follow suit. Bleating by anyone who is not one of “our people” is, sadly, irrelevant. We owe Mr Msimang a huge debt of gratitude.
This letter presents a glimmer of hope that at least a few members of the ANC do not support the criminality. This is the point that others in the organisation who support a war on criminality and performance measurement,
must take a stand alongside Msimang and declare their position. The question is: are there any others?
Brave man. That cannot have been easy.
Let’s hope there is deluge of departures from this thoroughly corrupt party. If only this happened a decade or so ago. Step 2 is now to motivate people to vote in the next election!
But will anyone in Government listen to this man , who is obviously in pain and rightly so.
Well done Sir – and may this be a start of many more willing and able ANC members resigning as they know the corruption, nepotism and incompetence has destroyed the party as well as SA as a whole.
At last an ANC insider with credibility and integrity – Cyril please take note! Well spoken Mavuso- I admire you.
Quite a wise man. Telling it like it is. But it will be wasted on the ”Comrades”.
By resigning, he thinks he can distance himself from 30 years of corruption, negligence and destruction. No, he was a loyal ANC cadre and just like his comrades, he is complicit and responsible.
True – I have never before heard him publicly declare the anc corrupt? Not even when jz sold the country from under “his people’s” noses.
A man of honor and integrity. A piece of the spirit of Nelson Mandela just left the ANC.
An unbelievably poignant, dignified and moving missive.
As a South African I thank you comrade Msimamg.
Congratulations Mr Msimang, there is no other choice if you have the interests of your country at heart. I hope many more will follow you.
Contrast the reasoned, moral and heartfelt words of Mavuso Msimang against the hollow, callous and venal lies of Mbalula and you know everything you need to about the current ANC.
One of the few in the cANCer to have the balls to act on what he says. Give this man a Bells!
What an impressive but disheartning article the DM has published about Mr Mavuso’s resignation letter! While the writing is on the wall that the ANC “might” lose next year’s election, the majority of the poor masses just do not seem to trust the IEC forthcoming results which agency is owned by the very organisation – the ANC. We can already predict the results that the elections were free and fair and the ANC has won by thin margin!
Such a pity that the only ones who really care have already left the ANC or were never members. Also, such a pity that we, the non-members shouting individually do not, and seem unable to, universally combine into a coherent and powerful opposition.
We share with the rest of the world a poverty of moral, and ethical political leadership. It has led us to where we are now. A society reflecting that absence of caring treatment of others, and consideration of the ‘other’ in all spheres of life, and in the day-to-day behavior of many.
This is huge for SA politics. Many years ago, I spent a helicopter flight with Mavuso Msimang – we were scouting a game reserve for recently-released elephants. My enduring memory of this man is of a highly intelligent, articulate gentleman who values ethics and accountability. Cry the beloved country
Great to hear, Simon!!
I salute you!!! Courage and sticking to one’s principles which in this case, is 100% right. Finally a big name with a proven track record and gravitas is ditching his vile party/government that it has become over the last 15 plus years. Corrupt, inept, self-serving, arrogant, criminal, parasitic, treasonous, treacherous and hypocritical to the core – its very DNA. Let’s hope that the few remaining decent ones – could probably count them in one hand – also summon the fortitude and follow suit. Do what is right for you and your country and ditch this miserable and rapacious party/government!
Agreed! Lets hope they remain decent and vote morally when the time comes ….
If all the good ones were to leave, what will we be left with in government – the bad and the ugly.
I do not think that an exodus of members will stop the rural majority to vote for the ANC. Maybe the EFF would get the rural vote (back to the bad and ugly) but still miserable and rapacious.
What a refreshing opportunity to read heartfelt appreciation and worthy compliments being paid to a man of stature, principle and integrity.
Your heart-wrenching decision to leave the ANC, is felt by everyone who had made similar commitments in any organisation that subsequently loses its’ moral compass and severely compromises the very people it was meant to serve.
The pain of departing may still be raw, but you are now, Sir, entitled to hold your head high and enjoy the respect of countless South Africans.
May your reward be, to live to see a Government elected that restores the ideals of compassion, service and commitment to the people of South Africa.
Running a modern free market economy completely beyond our ANC government.
Always was, always will be.
Hear! Hear!
Well done Sir, it takes balls of steel to be so so courageous. Ramaphosa was a weak president of the ANC when he narrowly won at Nasrec in 2017. He was held to ransom by party that has no respect for the office, of a President be that of the ANC or the country. This was because of the presidence set by Jacob Zuma in 2008, after his win at Polokwane, when he and his NEC recalled Mbeki.
Cyril was too scared of being recalled or voted out in a ” no confidence” vote, if he did not accede to demands of the criminals within the ANC.
Hence his decision not to reduce the size of his cabinet, but to increase it. This, at huge expense to the poorest of the poor.
The ANC will go down in history as the party who single handedly destroyed South Africa. And if they form a coalition with the EFF come 2024, then both parties will destroy whats left of this country.
The greed, corruption, gluttony and all things bad about the ANC and EFF will put the final nail in the coffin come 2024.
God, please save this beautiful country from ANC and EFF.
There will be no ANC/EFF coalition in 2024. Leave EFF out of ANC politics. My family and I will be voting EFF!!
So does that mean that you support stealing money from the poor to keep the ‘leaders’ of the party in a bling lifestyle?
Cry the beloved country…
No more Viva ANC, Viva! Definitely time for change.
Sadly, the organization he still thinks of as home has shown itself to be beyond salvation.
Good man.
While I applaud this man for standing against the ANC, I cannot shake the feeling that it’s to little and much to late. Lets hope I am wrong.
In the end though, we need to remember that these people gave their support to the ANC during the Zuma days and beyond, and that at least some of the mess we are in is also very much their fault.
It is atleast heartening to see, every now and then through these resignations, that there are people within the organization who see the truth. When the ruling party’s actions and consequences thereof are running rampant, you end up thinking that they’re all corrupt and heartless. It won’t do much good because they don’t listen to members who point out the wrongs but atleast they exist.
Heart-rending decision for this ANC veteran. Corruption,incompetence and arrogance of past and present leaders have thrown the country into an economic,social and morale crisis. They have thrown the high expectations of their own compatriots to the gutter. Sad indeed.
Sadly this brilliant letter is being read by people who sympathise and agree withMr Msimang. It should be translated into local languages and distributed to those who do not have access to information.
A truly inspiring letter which should be widely shared.
Well done Mavosu! The ANCVL has been pointing out the errors of the ANC to the NEC for years, but they have been ignored. The current leadership are so focused on feeding and winning elections, that concepts like “service delivery” and “a better life for all” are completely foreign.
Decampaigning the ANC…..Mbalula speak!!
Mavuso Msimang is a breath of fresh air in a country which is stagnating under the yoke of a political party which seems to have adopted all the unwanted traits of the apartheid regime it replaced. Despite more than a hundred years of fighting suppression and corruption, the leaders in the ANC from Cyril Ramaphosa, Fikile Mbalula, Bheki Cele, and down through the rank and file of the organisation, have taken just 30 years to unravel everything the party fought for. Thank you Mr. Msimang for your voice of reason, open honesty, and your courage in saying what has to be said, will go a long way in convincing the youth of South Africa that it is not too late to vote the ANC out in 2024 and replace it with people who will work to undo the harm they have done to this country and its citizens.
I hope this is the start of a trend.
Well, what does the ANC think? That members will follow them blindly forever more? People are beginning to see the light, thankfully, and to realise that the ANC has let them down miserably. May more and more people come to this realisation and ditch them before it is too late for this beautiful country.
Good news but its at least a decade and a half late.
What an honest and courageous man Mavuso Msimang is, we now have one less honest member in the ruling party. I agree that any member of the ruling party who still has any moral fiber left in them should follow him, resign and expose them as he has done. It is encouraging to those who have almost given up hope to have a true and honest stalwart stand his ground and expose this corrupt and inept party.
Could we pass a law in South Africa that all people in public office roles such as ministers, deputy ministers, MECs and public workers must procure services only from the public sector. E.g. they must attend public hospitals, children go to public schools, use only public police, use only Eskom power, etc. They cannot use private healthcare, private schools, private security, private sector power backup etc. this will create impetus for them to accelerate service delivery and improve the quality of services they are supposed to deliver to all of us.
Will anybody even listen?
The allegations contained in this resignation letter are unfortunately very true, there are more instances of corruption in the ANC and whenever one raises them to be addressed one is met with contempt and arrogance from the comrades such as Mbalula who are only concerned about power and its concomitant material benefits to the nations’ detriment , it is a shame that upstanding and brave people such a Mr. Msimang are allowed to leave, shame to you ANC!!
No dear Mr Msimang, the time to go was long ago, if you had the best interest of the country at heart….
This is a little late; the facts are that you have been living by the grace of the system for decades. &, now that the ANC is bankrupt & may even fail to win this election, Msimang is almost advertising himself as honourable as he jumps the burning, sinking ship – offering his services to the country (read : I still want to be a politician & I don’t care with whom, as long as we keep this form of government so that I can continue to prosper).
This is one of the lowest, most calculating desertions from a party that you will see.
I would love to think that his is a positive move by a decent man, but all a case of too little, too late. I suspect that, since he was part of the system for many decades, he didn’t ave the balls to actually speak out about what has been true for at least 15 years now. Perhaps the little pig wasn’t able o get his snout in the trough? I’ll only believe it when a huge mass of ANC supporters come out and insist that the leadership is charged and goes to jail. Not gonna happen.
When you’ve had enough … divorce is the only option. A man of integrity. Respect.
Agreed!
Following 30 years of devastating ANC corruption, mismanagement, cadre deployment, vindictiveness, growth destructive policies and so much more, there only option remaining for rationally minded individuals is to sever ties with the ANC and let it die the death it deserves.
Well it’s painful indeed to see Extinguished leader like Mr Msimang to leave once glorious movement like ANC, its in the open that ANC is no longer a viable organisation to lead its a movement of thugs and murderers within its ranks and everything they touch its crumbling due to corruption and greed.
Madiba must be turning in his grave at the corruption of the ANC and how they have failed the people.
Must have been a very difficult decision to come to, after he sacrificed so much for the ANC.
xxx
I applaud you, Mr Msimang; it is always difficult to step out of the laager, and we all, when loyalty is an important issue, likely only step “outside”, after we finally give up on achieving meaningful change from within, which, given the central position that the ANC fills for many South Africans, means that meaningful change can ONLY come from within, given the extraordinary loyalty, even when it must be clear to all, that corruption has fundamentally changed and damaged, not just the ANC itself, but it’s entire leadership.
Many of us hoped and believed that Ramaphosa could be that change, but clearly, Mr Msimang, no longer holds on to that hope, that has been extinguished in so many other fellow citizens.
For this not to be an empty gesture, it will be interesting to see whether others might now also take the same step; we need a solid core to build from if we are ever to get the South Africa we all aspire to.
Mavuso Msimang
You are too kind.. Bhengu Motsiri is deluded to even think they have the moral highground to utter words likze decampaigning… As if none of this is in plain sight. They disrespect themselves – to expect anything good from this gathering of useless men and women is like saying pigs will fly one day.
I cried with relief when Ramaphosa became president and voted for the ANC in the last elections. However, never again. Life Esidemeni (no one behind bars), Eskom corruption, draconian illogical and unconstitutional legislation during Covid and worst of all: stealing during Covid, essentially from the most vulnerable, by people who still had jobs, income and fringe benefits. That, ANC, is as low as you can go. That shows rottenness to the very core! Youvdo mot know the meaning of Ubuntu. It is all about enriching yourselves, no matter who suffers.
Well, “Comrade” Snuki, you may raise issues of corruption within the ANC until you’re dead and they will take Fuckile notice. Mavuso has at least (albeit a bit late in the day), the honour to say “no more”. But it’s too little too late.
After reading the letter of resignation and the reasons given for Mr. Msimang’s resignation, I absolutely agree with what he has said. I believe that after having served in the party for 60 years, he certainly “qualifies” to comment and pass judgement on how the ANC has conducted themselves and governed the country since coming into power.
I am a white South African that has resided in Canada since 1988 as I did not see a positive future for the country under apartheid. The ANC has been in power for almost 30 years now. Surely by now most black South Africans’ living conditions should be better then what they are right now. I have been back to South Africa in 2019 and 2022/23. I was somewhat surprised at some of the things I saw and heard from people.
For some reason I thought there would be far more integration between black and white people. There was to some extent, but the townships still existed and had grown in size. I just assumed that townships and locations – certainly a way of life from the apartheid era – would have been one of the first things that would have been done away with or at least reduced in size.
So many things were still the same from the time I lived there. I spoke to many black people and was encouraged by what some of them said. I believe there is a positive future for South Africa, there is plenty of opportunity for people.
I hope these issues that Mr. Msimang has exposed in his letter of resignation get the attention they deserve. The people need to hold their leaders responsible for their actions, weed out the corrupt politicians, expel those that hold office for personal gain, ensure qualified and educated people hold those positions of authority.
Personally I don’t care what race or gender the leaders are, whether they are vegetarian or lactose intolerant, as long as they do right for the country and the people.
I am purchasing property in South Africa in 2024, I want to spend time in the country I was born. Canada has been good to me, but believe this…the grass is – not – always greener on the other side. Every country has it’s own unique problems and issues.
I really hope that South Africans can thrive in the future, because that is where we are headed.
rent before you buy. Its two different worlds visiting and staying here. Be careful!
Finally ,someone has the guts to call out the evils that parade the corridors of goverment.
Sounds like a man of the people, being a man FOR the people, shame our leaders don’t aspire to building a country for all not just feeding themselves and their cronies. It seems that the ANC has run its course, they have abused their trusted positions and lost their backbone to populous vote.
*_ANC Legacy_*
*————————*
I see that Cyril Ramaphosa said we must praise the ANC for all that they have delivered to SA since 1994. 🧐 🤔 ….
Mr Msimang mentioned a corrupt apartheids regime. That regime offered the following to the ANC
Well, the list is endless. R/$ from 3.65 to 19 since ’94.
Petrol price from R2.65 P/L to R24+ since ’94. SA economic growth down from 4.5% in THEN-R/S terms to 0.3% in NOW-R/S terms. They’ve lost Iskor, Transnet, Spoornet, Portnet, SABC, the Post Office, SABC, SAA _AND_ Eskom since ’94. They’ve lost 44 000km of roads since ’94. They’ve increased our crime-levels to exceed both those of Mexico and Columbia on the mean index since ’94. They’ve built only 400 000 houses for the black population group – whilst our total population has increased form 35 million to 65 million since ’94.
They’ve managed to close-down 1.2 million small businesses since ’94. They’ve managed to get 1.4 million tax payers emigrated since ’94. Of whom 400 000 contributed to over 15% of the total personal income tax.
They’ve run 22 cities into the ground since ’94. They’ve created 480 new municipalities and managed to run them all into the ground since ’94. They’ve managed to pollute all our major rivers since ’94 to the extent that the entire eco-system is dead. Look at the Hennops river – so dead there’s no life left in it at all, except for the bacteria. The’ve managed to destroy 4 major dams in terms of ecoli levels since ’94. They’ve killed the St. Lucia estuary since ’94. They’ve bought 3200 milk farms since ’94 – of which only 3 are still operating. They’ve bought 8400 cattle and citrus farms since ’94 – only 23 of them are still producing.
They deserve all the praise they can get, I guess….
*_The Legacy of the ANC !_*
One would have hoped that after all the years of suffering under oppression and impoverishment under the Nats, there would have been a national will to work to provide a better future for as many citizens as possible. Instead, uBuntu was cast aside and the ‘me first’ became ‘only us’ with elected officials and their relatives gathering personal wealth at the enormous cost to the well being of the greater population. (The fact that excessive amounts of money, gained in this instance, at the expense of the crippling stench of greed and corruption)does not equal exponentially happier lives beyond the point of financial security does not seem to have been grasped at this point.) So the officials could have had their excellent salaries and comfortable lifestyles and made vast improvements to the lives of their people and lived a morally decent life. Instead, they decimated
the hopes and dreams of a better life for every one of their people, and most devastatingly, crushed the futures of the children of all races in the country. Ironically, the citizens of South Africa had far safer and economically better lives, education and teachers under the iniquitous apartheid government.
South Africa has an embarrassment of natural resources and a plethora of gifted people of all races, we should be one the most prosperous countries in the world. Instead we virtually top the charts for all the wrong reasons including crime, corruption and level of education. An absolute travesty for all South Africans.
Amen.
Huge respect to Mavuso Msimang for his bravery in speaking the truth about an organisation that has been his home and family 60 years, and that has fundamentally lost its soul. A true freedom fighter!
What a devastating and sadly, accurate indictment of the current state of the ANC and its bevy of deployed and unqualified Cadres to positions of national importance.
The ANC have become no better than the National Party when it comes to utter arrogance and rampant corruption that is woven into the organisation’s DNA. The wheels are falling off the wagon for the ANC with an ever increasing list of reasons why they are NOT fit to govern. Time to wake up South Africa, the party of Madiba isn’t going to redeem itself until it is given a reason to and that comes in the form of turning them over to the opposition.
30 years on and poverty is worse, crime is out of control, employment is a privilege, corruption is expected, society is divided less by race, more by class and we can’t even keep the lights on… need we find more reasons why it’s time to take a chance on change because it can’t be any worse than where we are right now. Mavuso Msimang walks away from a 6 decade long commitment not without careful consideration. If after so many years of dedication, he can accept it’s time to move on, so too can we the voters.
It’s our future, it’s our decision, we hold the power to decide!
I am surprised by all the euphoria and optimism over the “painful” resignation of Mavuso Msimang.
Are the disclosures in his resignation letter so newsworthy?
Is there anything new in his revealings?
Does anybody still remember the 874 pages detailing the findings of Judge Raymond Zondo?
Close to R1 billion later, on 22 June 2022, the final part of the report was published implicating about 1500 people by name, in what is termed “State Capture”.
How many of those have been convicted and jailed?
Do you really think that anything will change by the “shocking disclosures” in Mavuso Msimang’s resignation letter?
Maybe I’m missing something!
This should be read, slowly, loudly and clearly, in Parliament, by our Leader of the Opposition…OVERRIDING any Speaker’s objections, which, if occurring, could only be DISGUSTING!