Picture: Doctor Ngcobo/African News Agency (ANA) Archives
Still licking its factional wounds, the South African National Civics Organisation (Sanco) says its past squabbles and divisions have cost it dearly, but the good thing is that the movement has learnt its hard lessons.
The fourth alliance partner of the ANC said its divisions earned it almost five years in the political wilderness.
This was said by Sizwe Cele, the provincial coordinator of Sanco's interim structure in KwaZulu-Natal on Friday in Durban. The movement was part of an alliance summit.
The alliance summit involved the ANC, the South African Communist Party, the Congress of South African Trade Unions (Cosatu) and Sanco.
It follows a previous one the alliance partners held late last month in the same city to discuss several political issues.
Cele said no movement worth its salt should thrive on factionalism unless it wants to render itself irrelevant.
"Sanco has learnt the hard way that divisions and factions can cost you dearly. Divisions and factions can cause you to lose your political position. It’s been almost 4,5 years since we were in isolation," Cele said.
Cele added that he was grateful that sanity eventually prevailed as the warring factions eventually came together and formed a united interim structure to take the movement forward.
"Thank God through the spirit of Nomkhubulwane it donned to us that our disunity was music to the ears of the enemies of the revolution. It did not serve us nor the impoverished community of South Africa which Sanco is a vanguard for," Cele said.
Sanco's factional wars started in 2019 when there were parallel conferences that elected parallel structures.
The ANC then resolved not to include any of the structures until their fight has been settled by the courts where they have dragged each other.
However, the decision has since been resolved.
On Friday ANC Secretary-General, Fikile Mbalula wrote to his party structures and told them to work with the interim structure and invite them to ANC's events as an alliance partner.
While speaking in Durban, Cele added that while they were in squabbles, two groups emerged and attempted to register Sanco as a political party to contest the elections.
"Leadership, it is important to mention that as Sanco we are cognisant of the fact that while we were busy wrestling each other, some opportunistic scoundrels had sneakily tried to register Sanco as a political party. When that was brought to our attention, now the united NEC of Sanco instructed our General Secretary cde (comrade) Mike Soko to write to IEC and oppose that application, “ Cele said.
Cele added that fortunately they were able to thwart the moves.
"Today I am happy to report that we have successfully thwarted those applications as such they have been rejected by IEC on the basis that the real McCoy Sanco distances itself from such applications," Cele said.
sihle.mavuso@inl.co.za
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