Cartoon of the day: 31 August 2026
Should supporters forgive and give the ANC another chance to govern?
As South Africans gear up for local government elections, the governing African National Congress (ANC) seeks to mend relationships with its constituents and seek forgiveness. Preliminary projections suggest the ANC may lose a significant portion of its votes, prompting the party to consider potential coalition governments with other factions in numerous municipalities.
A complicated situation arises as the party has yet to declare a mayoral candidate and one contender, current mayor Dada Morero, had a heated exchange with a resident in Tshepisong. The resident accused the mayor of being a criminal, prompting Morero to repeatedly tell him, "you're talking s***t."
In response to the incident, ANC president Cyril Ramaphosa addressed the matter on Sunday, stating that Morero had apologized for his behavior. Ramaphosa expressed his hope that supporters would accept the apology. He described the incident as a mishap, emphasizing that it was not a deliberate act of damage control by the party.
Ramaphosa assured that while there will always be missteps and mistakes in any campaign, the crucial aspect is the willingness to humble oneself and apologize when necessary. The ANC president expressed confidence that supporters would remain loyal to the party despite the unfortunate incident.
Written by urgent.news from The Citizen's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
