An analysis of African National Congress (ANC) President Jacob Zuma’s political report at the party’s National General Council (NGC) 2015 points to a strong inward reflection, and focus on ground-level issues.
By creating a word cloud of the text of the speech, one has a visualisation of which words are used most in the address.
As can be seen from the word cloud below, issues relating to branches, the leagues, transformation, and negative tendencies and factionalism collectively enjoy significant attention, as does ground-level issues like service delivery, economic growth, poverty, and crime.
A word cloud analysis on the combined policy discussion documents availed for the NGC, pointed to an emphasis on development issues, addressing government strategies, and looking into national interest.
However, in delivering his political report, President Zuma’s focus was on affirming the power of the ANC branches, as opposed to its leadership.
The ANC seems to be experiencing a crisis at branch level with members leaving in by the thousands. At least 450 000 having left the party in the past three years, with overall membership accordingly having declined with a massive 37% from over a million three years ago.
In addition, in its discussion documents, the party states that every member has to be an ambassador for the party. However, the national leadership has had to accede that corruption is seriously undermining this drive.
In Secretary General Gwede Mantashe’s organisational report he says the party is worried its electoral support may dip to below 60% in next year’s Local Government Elections, which are expected to be fiercely contested.
The party says this could be a psychological and political turning point seen as a sign of the demise of the party.
In her analysis of the ANC NGC 2015 policy discussion documents, Susan Booysens wrote branches are the life-blood of the ruling party, and while the party is focussing in what is sees as threats in the media and opposition, the branches “have to be politically educated, mobilised, and controlled.”
“Discipline and conformity are preferred words in branch organisation at the time of NGC 2015, in the time of President Jacob Zuma,” writes Booysens.
– By Christelle du Toit
