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Members of the family of Victor Mashabane, the local community and the African National Congress again have to mourn the loss of a comrade who has died at the hands of assailants.  Mashabane was the Speaker at the Nkomazi Local Municipality and was shot dead after being abducted from his home in Kamhlushwa.

This is not the first murder of a member of the ANC and there is little doubt that it will not to be the last.

The motive behind the murder of Mashabane is still to be known. However, as veterans and stalwarts, we believe, based on current trends, that many of the murders can be linked to factionalism and corruption which is part of the crisis within the ANC and our country.

Evidence increasingly suggests that a number of those targeted often appear to be those who, along with the overwhelming majority of members of the ANC, and other South Africans reject corruption; want to see a return to the historical values and principles of the ANC and believe in service to communities without thinking of self-enrichment.

Reflecting on the lives of two great departed stalwarts, Walter Sisulu and OR Tambo, Sheila Sisulu said of Walter Sisulu, “Sisulu went to jail not knowing money and returned still not knowing money, therefore, he would not have been seduced by money.” And Barbara Masakela speaking about Tambo said, “He did not know that money comes first, but (that) service came first.”  

We believe there is a growing movement within the ANC that believes we need to move beyond words and actively confront those who have brought shame on our movement.

No one event is going to reverse the rot that has set in, not just within the ANC, but in the broader political, economic and social life of South Africa. No single event is going to restore the lost trust of the people of South Africa in the ANC. However, we still argue that, for the ANC at least, the most appropriate intervention is to directly confront the demons in our midst and do what the ANC has always done at a times of internal crisis to use the agency of a Consultative Conference.

We have motivated for a Consultative Conference of the ANC since October 2016; We are part of the groundswell of support that such a Consultative Conference of the ANC must be held before the Elective Conference. As veterans and stalwarts, recognising the urgency of this matter, we have therefore, resolved to take the initiative to convene a Consultative Conference of the ANC from the 17th to the 19th of November 2017.

Issued by ANC Stalwarts and Veterans