Sello Shai-Morule ANC BEC writes in his personal capacity:
I am an active member of the ANC in good standing and with 26 years unbroken political record. We organised ourselves as seven comrades, utilised a seven-seater vehicle of a friend, arranged a house of a comrade for two nights in Rustenburg, all necessities and we were comfortable.
Everything was hospitable. However, many comrades spent their nights in five-star hotels while ordinary supporters of the ANC slept on the road, travelling in buses and minibuses and unable to take a bath.
On Saturday as we drove to Phokeng Royal Bafokeng Stadium, we started discussing how we were continuing to abuse our comrades by making them to travel in old buses for long distances.
And as if it is not enough, a very sad moment happened at a food outlet in Phokeng, Rustenburg, over lunch. Comrades of ANC with full ANC regalia were begging for leftovers and they had to recycle food from plates left by those who could afford a meal of R40.
We bought food for comrades from Vryburg, North West, who claimed that they had travelled the entire night and they were not even served breakfast.
The comrades were broken down, angry and disappointed with the ANC. I therefore concluded that the ANC, my ANC is continuing to abuse its loyal members and it seems, is not ready to rectify this.
This approach of making all ANC comrades in the county gather in one area is just not working and no longer relevant. Last year comrades travelled to Western Cape in buses for hours without taking a bath in the name of ANC, only to be able to use filling stations toilets to wipe their faces.
This repeated itself this weekend. Leadership is flying and cruising in air-conditioned vehicles and loyal members of the ANC are forced to travel uncomfortably for long distances with old buses which had mechanical problems on various national roads.
We can’t allow this to continue to happen, because of public relations and economic spin-off that we claim.
This event must be relocated to different ANC regions and 80 strong NEC members must be allowed to read the January 8, ANC NEC Birthday Statement.
