State legitimacy may be undermined if the relationship between the party and government was not managed, African National Congress (ANC) National Executive Committee (NEC) member Joel Netshitenzhe said on Thursday.

"The ANC is the strategic centre of power and should not micromanage the State," he told the ANC Gauteng's extended provincial executive committee (PEC) meeting in Benoni.

Netshitenzhe was participating in a political discussion entitled "The State and revolution in our times".

He criticised those who "held onto power", despite being subjected to disciplinary hearings or even to court processes, saying this too eroded State power.

"...the conduct of people in positions of power does not show respect for the masses of South Africans," he said, adding that while a lot of progress had been made, this remained a challenge.

Netshitenzhe condemned the violent nature of service delivery protests around the country.

"If this happens consistently... what is an exception then becomes a rule in society...and this undermines the legitimacy and authority of the State," he said.

He said firm law enforcement was needed and better communication between the State and communities.

Standerton in Mpumalanga province and Diepsloot in Gauteng province remained engulfed in protest action on Thursday - with two senior ANC NEC members, Fikile Mbalula and Malusi Gigaba opting not to venture into the troubled Sakhile township in Standerton.

Netshitenzhe described the protests as one of many challenges the State faced. Some of these communities engaged in the protests had real grievances and the ruling party also had some responsibility to bear.

"The demonstrations [are] derived from actions of leaders of either the ANC or its allies," he said.

Destruction of property during the protests had become the norm, he said.

This, through time, ate away at the State's legitimacy.

"Everyone starts to believe that to be listened to, you must destroy State property and break the law," he said.

The protest in Diepsloot was organised by members of the ANC's allies, the South African Communist Party, the South African National Civic Organisation and the Young Communist League. They were calling for the immediate removal of Johannesburg Mayor Amos Masondo.

"It is a sad day for alliance structures to organise a march against the ward councillors and the executive mayor. We had several meetings with the alliance structures in our effort to discuss and determine the rationale for raising such demands," said ANC Gauteng spokesperson Dumisa Ntuli.

Netshitenzhe told PEC members the ruling party had performed better in each election it participated in, but its "ability to engender a revolutionary value system in society was moving in the opposite direction".

Corruption within State institutions bore testament to this, he said.

"[The] approach that the individual matters and that everyone can serve themselves... is getting more and more entrenched in society.

"... we might have been regressing as a society," he added.

Senior members of the Gauteng legislature were present, including Premier Nomvula Mokonyane and economic development MEC Firoz Cachalia, as was Masondo.

NEC member Pallo Jordan discussed liberation movements and State power.