There are no permanent friends or enemies in the ANC, says Polokwane mayor

Award-winning mayor of Polokwane, the biggest and richest municipality in Limpopo, John Mpe, has been re-elected Peter Mokaba ANC regional chair.

He was elected unopposed during an elective conference at The Ranch Hotel, outside Polokwane, on Wednesday.

Mpe’s re-election makes him the most powerful mayor and ANC bigwig in all the five regions of the ANC in Limpopo.

He made a name for himself after he contested and won his bid to become the mayor of the Polokwane municipality three months ago. Polokwane is the Limpopo provincial capital and the economic hub of the province. It is also the most populated town in the province with over a million people.

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The City of Stars, which is how it is affectionately known, or Polokwane ga-bo Maria, is also home to tens of thousands
job seekers as the town shed most of its jobs due to the advent of the Covid pandemic, which resulted in massive job losses in recent months.

Limpopo is one of the poorest provinces in the country after the Eastern Cape. The province depends mostly on tourism, mining and agriculture for survival. The majority of the population are living from hand to mouth because of the critical shortage of jobs.

“I want to work hand-in-glove with my comrades to deliver a united ANC region into the provincial conference,” said the elated Mpe.

“I want to make sure we speak the same political language. My primary objective is to make sure I deliver President Cyril Ramaphosa for a second term come December 2022.

“I don’t know of any president of the ANC who was not supported by branches to serve a second term. We may differ in ideologies, perceptions and preferences, but at the end of an elective conference, we always rally behind the formally elected president in an endeavour to deliver the aspirations of our people with precision and distinction. You must remember, there are no permanent friends or enemies in the ANC.

“We all sing the same political song after the pronouncement of an elective conference. So I don’t agree with the fact that I am a member of the radical economic transformation.

“I am a member of the ANC in good standing with the sole aim of working hand-in-glove with other comrades to deliver expected services to our people, as mandated by the ANC constitution and government legislation.”

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The conferences have seen Norman Mashabane region, the biggest in terms of membership, electing the South African Local Government Association provincial chair and Mopani district municipality’s executive mayor Pule Shayi as regional chair, Tshitereke Matibe chair for the Vhembe region and Julia Mathebe elected chair for the Sekhukhune district municipality.

It remains to be seen who will be elected a leader for Waterberg in the upcoming ANC regional elective conference. Only time will tell.