THE ANC’s Moses Mabhida regional chairperson Mzimkhulu Thebolla says that the governing party losing the uMngeni Local Municipality to the DA was a message from its voters that the party had not done right by them, and needed to fix things.
Thebolla, who was speaking at the party’s provincial January 8 Statement and its 110th birthday celebration in Mpophomeni, Howick, outside Pietermaritzburg on Sunday, vowed that the ANC would get uMngeni Local Municipality back, as the DA was in power “only for now”.
The ANC held its provincial January 8 Statement and 110th birthday celebration in the DA-controlled Mpophomeni with having wrestled control of the council away from the ANC in the 2021 local local government elections.
“We are here to pass a message to the people of uMngeni, starting with those who have departed to pass our apologies to them, Comrade Isiah Ntshangase, who came from here, Comrade Peter Zondi chairperson of the ANC in the Moses Mabhida region, Comrade Sthembiso Mhlongo and other comrades who came from here who we believe did their work in South Africa’s liberation Struggle and freeing the people of this area with aplomb.
“We believe that wherever they are they are unhappy with what happened two months ago in this area, that is why we are here to make a commitment to the people of this area that we will get back uMngeni.
“… That is why we are making the commitment that we will double our efforts to ensure the job that the people of South Africa have given us to make their lives better is realised,” Thebolla said.
He added that contrary to the widely held notion that the people of uMngeni had shown the ANC “the middle finger”, but they had simply indicated to them that there was something the party was not doing right.
“They sent us a message to fix things and we are here to commit ourselves to fixing things. Another thing that we will fix is to build a united ANC, that works for the people,” Thebolla said.
He added that they were committed to building branches of the ANC that work for the people, and that where there is an ANC branch the problems facing people will cease to exist, regardless whether the councillor is from the ANC or not.
“We will ensure that those people deployed by the ANC to government will serve the people to ensure that our integrity is restored everywhere, and that the faith that the people show the ANC is also restored,” Thebolla said.
Political Bureau