ANC must listen to Oliver Tambo

This week, I came across an old quote from the highly reputable late ANC president, Oliver Reginald Tambo, that sums up how the ANC should proceed with its affairs going forward.

Tambo’s statements – said many years ago and under difficult conditions of exile – were always prophetic of what was going to happen in a free South Africa.

He said: “Let’s tell the truth to ourselves even if the truth coincides with what the enemy is saying. Let us tell the truth.”

Tambo, like Nelson Mandela, remains an influential figure in the lives of many South Africans. He still holds sway among many ANC members as a source of inspiration. Many who worked with him continue to speak with nostalgic pride about this leader.

This notwithstanding the fact that being the time to “eat”, or loot, some comrades would rather forget about Tambo because the principled leader would have despised them and their crooked ways.

Listening to him on Radio Freedom in my locked room, Tambo never issued an instruction that was wrong or made no sense. Whatever he said would inspire more confidence – even in those who had no links with his movement.

The circulation of Tambo’s quotes on social media coincided with this week’s parliamentary vote on whether to go ahead with the investigation into the fitness of Public Protector Busisiwe Mkhwebane to hold office.

It seemed to instruct the ANC to come to its senses, that it did not matter whether a motion was proposed by the DA or the “enemy”, the principle is thesame – mediocrity should not be tolerated.

To say voting with the DA was in breach of the ANC constitution is nonsense because the same ANC not so long ago voted with the EFF in support of land expropriation without compensation.

Those who advocate this view fail to get Tambo’s message that it does not matter whether the truth comes from the enemy, it remains the truth.

You have to support it as long as it is for the good of South Africa. The ANC caucus decision to support the vote to investigate Mkhwebane exposed the fact that those who make the most noise in the party are not as powerful as we think.

To this grouping, loyalty and patronage are important even if there are clear grounds to impeach the public protector.

It became clear that some MPs take orders from, or report to, ANC secretary-general Ace Magashule rather than the caucus about parliamentary issues.

Gwede Mantashe showed leadership when he intervened to instruct the caucus to do the right thing. He left us with a clear idea about who is in charge in the ANC between the two party factions and that there are some in the party who still think rationally.

Now, we know that despite not making too much noise in public – like their counterparts in the other faction – there are those who want the ANC to stay on the course followed by the likes of Tambo and Mandela.

Otherwise, if they opposed the Mkhwebane probe or even her impeachment, how would the ANC have justified the waste of resources and time to appoint a panel of experts and formulate guidelines on procedure to remove the heads of Chapter 9 institutions, including Mkhwebane?

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