THE African National Congress (ANC) was "not afraid" of pushing organisational change, as it confronts a need to maintain internal unity as well as improve on the ability to ensure that its policies were implemented by the government, newly elected ANC secretary-general Jessie Duarte said on Wednesday.
Speaking in Mangaung on Wednesday, Ms Duarte said "the ANC like every organisation moves along with the time", and all organisations needed to adapt to a "modern, hi-tech society".
Ms Duarte said: "We are not afraid to trim our organisation to suit the need."
In depth: Mangaung 2012
News, views, analysis and multimedia coverage of the ANC's 2012 Mangaung elective conferenceMs Duarte was elected unopposed as deputy secretary-general on Tuesday after her predecessor, Thandi Modise, declined to stand. Ms Duarte will assist secretary-general Gwede Mantashe, elected for a second term to the position, in his role as chief administrator of the ANC.
Mr Mantashe had warned of continued factionalism as well as strains in the relationship with alliance partner, the Congress of South African Trade Unions in his organisation’s report on the state of the ANC on Sunday, despite maintaining it (alliance) was unified and had never been more capable of confronting "contradictions".
The organisation’s report had noted the debate over a massive increase in membership numbers, as opposed to a focus on membership quality but noted that quality and quantity were not mutually exclusive. The report also warned of problems ensuring national executive committee members were able to effectively operate when deployed to provinces.
The next five years could likely see more focus on understanding how branches operate (through research) to gain clarity on the state of the party, the enforcement of discipline as well as ensuring ANC policies were understood and effected at all levels, said Ms Duarte.
This would also require the "unpacking" of the policy implications and meaning of the National Democratic Revolution concept to every member, she said.
Post a comment