THE GREAT UNRAVELLING: ANC devours itself from within as voters steadily turn their backs

The African National Congress (ANC) has been engulfing itself in factional warfare, patronage battles, and electoral decline, leading to a struggling future as it prepares for municipal elections in November. The decline became evident in the 2016 local government election manifesto launch in Port Elizabeth, now called Gqeberha, where the venue barely filled up.

Despite musical performances by the MC and party leaders, the crowd soon dispersed to the beach and malls rather than listen to speeches. The disengagement from the party's messages was evident throughout subsequent elections.

The ANC's decline accelerated in the 2019 general election, 2021 local government elections, and 2024 general elections. In the lead-up to the upcoming municipal elections, the party launched its manifesto in a rather subdued event at Riverside settlement in Johannesburg, showcasing a mixed-income development that the ANC believes is a model for delivering to poor communities. However, choosing the low-key venue was a strategic move to avoid empty seats at a stadium and to highlight the ANC's accomplishments.

The party's struggle to cohere on anything other than sowing chaos was evident when they failed to announce mayoral candidates for metros and secondary cities on time, instead providing long lists and undergoing a National Executive Committee meeting to finalize the lists amid further factional fighting. The ANC also announced a requirement for councillors to have matric, further emphasizing the party's insatiable hunger for power.

The ANC's internal turmoil, inability to cohere, and focus on chaos-making have resulted in the party eating itself from within, leading to its eventual demise.