Ramaphosa’s ANC comments ignite debate

ANC leaders divided over president's remarks on municipal performance

- THAMI MAGUBANE

PRESIDENT Cyril Ramaphosa's comments regarding ANC-run municipalities were damaging and the platform he used was not appropriate.

This is the reaction of ANC councillors and mayors to the ANC leader's utterances that party leaders should learn from DA-run municipalities.

While the remarks are accurate, they added, the timing and the platform used to air them have exposed them to being mocked and de-campaigned by the opposition. Other ANC leaders took to social media to accuse Ramaphosa of being an "agent" sabotaging the ANC on behalf of the DA.

President Ramaphosa admitted during a roll call with ANC councillors at the FNB stadium on Monday, where he revealed that DA-run municipalities were in much better shape than those of the ANC.

"What is it that they are doing that is better than what we are doing?" He added, "We need to be moving up the ladder of being good at what we do; we cannot remain at the bottom. It hurts me deeply when I continue to see that our (ANC) municipalities sometimes move backwards."

A councillor from Msunduzi Municipality stated that the remarks were damaging but true. "He spoke like a businessman, and we have to learn from others." He added that the remarks did give the opposition something to campaign on.

"They are already using this in slogans and campaigning against us, but we understand that we are heading towards elections, and we have come across as fools who do not do the work.