ANC appoints people on party loyalty instead of skills

Mbhazima Shilowa said that the ANC appoints people based on the faction they support rather than merit or capacity.

Shilowa is a former ANC stalwart and trade union leader who served in numerous political leadership positions.

He was the former general secretary of the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and served as Gauteng Premier from 1999 to 2008.

He was a close ally of Thabo Mbeki and resigned from office on 29 September 2008 in protest of the ANC’s decision to recall Mbeki from the national presidency.

In October 2008, he resigned from the ANC to co-found an ANC breakaway party, COPE, with Mosiuoa Lekota.

He was kicked out of the party in February 2011 after a leadership battle with Lekota and retired from politics.

Shilowa remains a respected commentator on political matters and retains insight into how the ANC functions, given his previous ties to the party.

He shared his thoughts on the current political situation in an eNCA CheckPoint podcast interview titled Mbhazima Shilowa: Why Political Backing Beats Merit.

He said that within the ANC, the best people are not always appointed to senior leadership positions.

“This is because it isn’t about merit or capacity. Sometimes it’s about who holds sway in which faction or league,” he said.

“If you look around, you’ll find that there are certainly better people available than a number of current ministers and past ones.”

He explained that the ANC’s difficulty is that it speaks with both sides of its mouth, citing the criticism of Dina Pule’s appointment as minister.

“We might all complain about Dina Pule, but Gwede Mantashe is still there despite the findings against him in the Zondo Commission,” he said.

“I know he says he’s taking the matter under review, but the reality is that sometimes it’s not about whether you’ve been formally found guilty.”

“It’s about recognising that, in the best interest of the movement, you shouldn’t serve in that position.”

“That is the reality. It is not the most capable who get deployed, but those with the most powerful political backing.”