Chairperson of session: Cde Mvoko
Chaplaincy : Rev. Mantini
NEC members
PEC members
ANC Leagues
Alliance reps
Comrades and Delegates,
Allow me to speak plainly. We have gathered here at an adjourned conference not merely to deliberate on procedural matters, but to confront a moment that will define the future of our movement. The terrain upon which we stand is neither neutral nor accidental. As was the case during the wars of resistance, as was the case in the darkest days of apartheid, the Eastern Cape has once again been marked as a primary target and by consequence the national standing of the movement.
What may superficially present itself as internal organizational dynamics increasingly reveals itself as part of a broader, coordinated counter-revolutionary agenda.
Why? Because those who oppose the cause of liberation understand a fundamental truth that we must never forget: if the Eastern Cape is fragmented, the overall organizational coherence of the African National Congress evaporates.
We are the historic stronghold. We are the ideological anchor. We are the province of OR Tambo, of Walter Sisulu, of the very soil from which the tree of freedom grew. And precisely because of that, the enemies of progress have trained their sights on us. What presents itself as internal organizational dynamics is, in reality, something far more sinister.
We are witnessing a coordinated counter-revolutionary agenda designed to divide, weaken, and ultimately neutralize this province. When the foundation cracks, the entire structure trembles. Therefore, the defense of unity in the Eastern Cape is not a provincial imperative, it is a national strategic necessity.
But let us be clear about what is at stake. This conference is not merely about filling positions. It is not about the ambitions of individuals or the narrow interests of factions. We must put an end to petty squabbles and personal jealousies. These are the words of our greatest strategist, Oliver Reginald Tambo, who warned us:
“We must put an end to petty squabbles and personal jealousies and unite our people around a common programme of action.”
Comrades, the persistence of factionalism, personality cults, and narrow interests creates fertile ground for infiltration and manipulation. To put it bluntly: what is currently underway are the seeds of counter-revolution. These divisions are often neither organic nor innocent, they are sponsored, amplified, and exploited by forces hostile to the liberation movement. They seek to achieve through internal discord what they could never achieve through direct confrontation.
Vladimir Lenin, in the crucible of another revolution, issued a warning that echoes across a century to reach us here today:
“Disunity is tantamount to surrender.”
Let that sink in. Disunity is tantamount to surrender. When we fight amongst ourselves for the spoils of office while the people wait for delivery, we surrender. When we allow personal ambition to override collective discipline, we surrender. When we become agents of division rather than soldiers of unity, we hand victory to those who would see this movement destroyed.
What is currently underway is not a singular opposition, but a convergence of desperate forces, while these forces advance differing ideological justifications, they converge around a singular objective: the removal of the ANC from power.
As Kwame Nkrumah observed:
“The forces that unite us are intrinsic and greater than the superimposed influences that keep us apart.”
The task of the ANC, therefore, is not to dismiss these contradictions, but to politically engage and resolve them in a manner that strengthens unity rather than fractures it.
As the ANC we are steadfast, these forces will not succeed, ANC will triumph and rightful owners of the organization will renew the mandate of the PEC and in that regard, we are very clear, the moment of renewal is upon us and will not change.
The defense of the revolution requires vigilance not only against external opposition, but also against internal weaknesses. The struggle to maintain unity in the Eastern Cape is, in essence, a struggle to defend the very core of the ANC.
We decisively reject all attempts whether internal or externally driven to divide our Province over narrow, pedestrian matters. Unity, discipline, and ideological clarity remain our most potent weapons.
In the moment we are in we are clear that legally we can proceed with the Conference as the appeal has been successfully lodged, and its legal implications is that the interim interdict is suspended.
As the ANC we have chosen this path of constitutional democracy and its implication is that we believe in the rule of law and we are law-abiding organization, we are not rouge and we will never act in contempt.
This moment calls for a higher level of revolutionary discipline, political maturity, and organisational consciousness. The defense of the revolution requires vigilance not only against external threats, but also against internal weaknesses.
It is precisely for this reason that the ANC must act with circumspect, guided by its Constitution, its values, and its long-standing traditions of democratic centralism. We are not an organization that acts recklessly or in defiance of due process. We are a movement that has consciously chosen the path of constitutional democracy, and therefore we are bound both politically and morally to uphold the rule of law.
The directive of the Secretary General to place the Conference in abeyance until further notice is not a sign of weakness, nor is it a retreat. It is a demonstration of principled leadership, respect for organisational processes, and a commitment to ensuring that all outcomes are beyond reproach both politically and legally.
To proceed in haste, even where there may be a legal argument to do so, would expose the organisation to unnecessary risk, deepen divisions, and potentially delegitimize the very outcomes we seek to defend.
The ANC does not simply seek to be legally correct; it must be organizationally legitimate and politically unassailable.
Our movement has survived for over a century precisely because it has balanced militancy with discipline, and urgency with strategic patience. Acting with restraint at this moment is an expression of strength, not indecision.
As a Province, we have complied with every provision of the ANC Constitution and adhered to all relevant guidelines. We are confident that the legal processes will vindicate our position. But more importantly, we are committed to ensuring that when the Conference reconvenes, it does so on a firm, united, and uncontested organisational footing.
This moment must not deflate delegates. On the contrary, it must invigorate and mobilize them to defend the unity, integrity, and historic mission of the ANC. Delegates remain the rightful custodians of this organisation, and at the soonest appropriate time, they will reconvene to fulfil the mandate of the Conference.
In this regard as the Province, we have complied with every provision in the Constitution and with our own guidelines and we are confident that the court processes will rule in our favour.
Let us be clear, the repeated delays of this conference are no administrative accident, they are a deliberate tactic designed to break our momentum, to sap our zeal, and to erode our collective strength in the desperate hope that the dynamics on the ground might somehow shift in favour of those who thrive on confusion and division. But they miscalculate.
The dynamics they seek to manipulate will not change, because the will of the people is not a passing current, it is a constant, unwavering force. That will remain resolute now and tomorrow, here in the Eastern Cape and across our nation.
You cannot adjourn the people’s determination. No procedural manoeuvre, no engineered postponement, can alter the fundamental truth that the masses are behind this movement and that their demand for unity, delivery, and the renewal of the African National Congress will be answered on our terms, in our time, and without surrender.
But I stand before you today to declare that victory is certain. Not because I say so, but because the people demand it.
Comrades, on behalf of the Provincial Executive Committee of the Eastern Cape, I wish to convey our warmest congratulations to our comrades in the Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces for successfully convening their respective provincial conferences and electing new leadership.
In an environment where detractors seek to portray our movement as incapable of renewal, you have demonstrated that the African National Congress remains a disciplined, resilient, and battle-ready organization capable of managing its own affairs and emerging stronger from internal processes.
We salute your unity of purpose and the political maturity you have displayed. On behalf of the Eastern Cape, we wish you strength, unwavering unity, and revolutionary zeal as you undertake the weighty leadership tasks that lie ahead knowing that when one province stands firm, the entire movement stands taller.
Dare I say Victory is Certain. Victory is sustaining a political programme for liberation at all costs. We did not defeat the enemy to become managers of poverty. We entered into this democratic dispensation to transform society. And transformation requires discipline. It requires unity. It requires leadership that understands that it is a servant of the people, not a master of patronage.
Comrades, the counter-revolution, seeks to reduce us to a collection of warring factions. We must respond by becoming a united army of liberation. The counter-revolution seeks to convince our people that the ANC can no longer govern. We must respond by demonstrating that in the Eastern Cape, we can deliver. The counter-revolution seeks to use this conference to deepen divisions. We must respond by emerging from this moment even more united, more focused, and more determined than ever before.
I am calling on each delegate here to rise to the moment. We carry the weight of history on our shoulders. We carry the hopes of millions who still look to the ANC as their only hope for liberation. We carry the responsibility to ensure that this province, the cradle of our revolution, remains a stronghold of progressive governance.
Let us leave here with a collective resolve. Let us leave here united behind the principles of our movement, committed to the cause of liberation, and prepared to defend the gains of our revolution at all costs.
Keep your
The moment of reckoning is upon us, and the hour of renewal has struck.
Amandla!!
