The African Independent Congress (AIC) is a regional party founded by the people of Matatiele and surrounding rural communities. Established on 12 December 2005 after the ruling-ANC decided to incorporate the area under the Eastern Cape in August of that year, the party participated in the local government elections and won ten seats in the Matatiele municipality.
Dubbing themselves “victims of political manipulation”, the AIC has labelled the ANC as arrogant for “ignoring the poor people of Matatiele”. This – for the party – was one of the main reasons in forming the AIC.
The AIC says that it “does not want to govern” but rather advocates a more inclusive type of governance model where ordinary citizens voices are considered in the political-decision making process.
The AIC says that it is also opposed to any notions of a one party state where a “ruling party takes decisions affecting the whole nation at party conferences”.
They proved to be have a fair following in the Matatiele region when they won a seat in the Easter Cape Provincial Legislature in the 2009 general elections.
– By