African National Congress (ANC)

The African National Congress (ANC) is the governing party of South Africa, supported by its tripartite alliance with the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu), South African Civic Organisation (Sanco) and the South African Communist Party (SACP).

Founded in 1912 as the South African Native National Congress, it aimed to bring Africans together to defend their rights and fight for freedom. In 1923 its name was changed to the African National Congress (ANC).

Following the 1960 Sharpeville massacre, the party was banned by the Nationalist government. From 1961 organised acts of sabotage began, marking the emergence of Umkhonto we Sizwe, the armed wing of the ANC. The ANC was to be an underground and exiled organisation for the next 30 years.

In February 1990, the government unbanned the ANC and released Nelson Mandela and other political prisoners. The ANC was again able to openly recruit members and establish regional structures.

In the historic 1994 elections the ANC won 62% of the vote. Nelson Mandela became South Africa’s first democratically elected president. In the 1999 elections the party increased its majority to a point short of two-thirds of the total vote. A two- thirds majority theoretically allows a party to change the country’s Constitution. Thabo Mbeki succeeded Mandela as president of the country.

ANC key objective is the creation of a united, non-racial, non-sexist and democratic society. The Freedom Charter remains the party’s basic policy document. Adopted in June 1955 by the ANC and its allies, the charter lists principles on which a democratic South Africa should be built.

Launching the 2014 Elections Manifesto African National Congress (ANC) President Jacob Zuma said the promises contained in the party’s elections manifesto, were realistic and achievable

In the 2004 elections the party, which declared itself to be a social democratic party, retained its two-thirds majority (69.7%). After Mbeki resigned in 2008, a group of former ministers – led by Mosiuoa Lekota – split away and formed the Congress of the People.
In the 2009 elections, the ANC’s majority fell to 64.9%, and Jacob Zuma became the country’s president.

The ANC is, with its tripartite alliance partners, committed to the values of the National Democratic Revolution. This, the ANC says, “strives to achieve the liberation of Africans in particular and black people in general from political and economic bondage. It means uplifting the quality of life of all South Africans, especially the poor.”

Launching the 2014 Elections Manifesto African National Congress (ANC) President Jacob Zuma said the promises contained in the party’s elections manifesto, were realistic and achievable.

President Zuma warned supporters against falling for the charms of newly formed parties which were “formed by ill-disciplined people who got expelled by parties they previously served”.

“There’s only one party that can be called a party for the people,” said Zuma.

He said the party’s manifesto was a well-thought-out and well-researched action plan, adding that gender equity would be given serious consideration when the party would decide on candidates for Parliament.

2014 Elections Manifesto

The 2014 election theme is Together We Move South Africa Forward!

The party hopes to extend on its 2009 manifesto priorities identified. These include the creation of more jobs, decent work and sustainable livelihoods for inclusive growth; rural development, land reform and food security; education; health; and fighting crime and corruption.

On the economy and jobs, the ANC commits itself to supporting local industries and businesses by permitting the state to acquire 75% of goods and services from these suppliers. Local jobs will be created as a result;

The youth will be targeted through specifically-targeted job placement and internship schemes, including training programmes;
The Expanded Public Works programme to create some six million jobs by 2019, with 80% of these ‘opportunities’ to go to unemployed youth;

Investigate the possibility of a national minimum wage across sectors to reduce income inequality;

Strengthen laws to drive employment equity targets;

Measures to look at abusive practices at work, including labour broking;

On rural development, land reform and food security, the ANC hopes to improve the lot of farm works, especially female workers;

To encourage more local producers and to provide viable markets for their agricultural goods and services;

To help the poor with an expanded Food for All programme;

To speed up land claims filed before the 1998 cut-off period; and to reopen claims beginning in 2014;

On human settlements and basic services; the ANC seeks to provide one million ‘housing opportunities’ by 2019; and to improve the level of services & infrastructure in informal settlements;

On education and training, the ANC promises to ensure Grade R is made compulsory; adult illiteracy to be eradicated completely; and compulsory community service for all graduates;

On health, the National Health Insurance (NHI) is to be rolled out and supported by a publicly-funded NHI purse; private health care costs to be brought down; and HIV/ Aids ARV treatment to reach 4.6 million by 2016;

On fighting crime and corruption, the ANC aims to come down hard on both private and public sector corruption; and if any ANC politician/ leader is found guilty of either, they will need to relinquish their positions in the party and government;

The manifesto also aims to do the following in the next few years:

– Expand funding for research & development in the science/ technology sector to at least 1.5% of GDP;
– To increase youth participation in the National Rural Youth Service Corps from the current 14 000 to 50 000 by 2019;
– Gap market housing to benefit more middle class workers such as nurses, teachers, police officers, office workers etc;
– Some 1.6 million homes to be electrified by 2019;
– Pre-school/ Grade R of two years to be made compulsory, thus extending schooling life from 12 to 14 years;
– Two new universities to be opened in the Northern Cape and Mpumalanga, with a third health sciences university to be built;
– The ANC will complete 12 new FET colleges by 2014;
– To enrol some 500 000 more tertiary students by 2019;
– An additional 1000 schools to be constructed by 2019;
– The ANC will double the number of doctors trained locally and abroad, with a turnaround of some 2000 doctors per year;
-Promote the values of the SA Constitution as the country approaches the 20th anniversary of the document’s adoption in 2016;