Renewal without accountability: ANC’s paradox of self-correction

The African National Congress (ANC), once the proud standard-bearer of South Africa’s liberation and democracy, now finds itself in a moral and political quagmire. The party that once spoke with moral authority about justice and equality has become synonymous with factionalism, corruption, and internal decay. Yet, in a paradox that borders on the absurd, many of the very individuals who dragged the organisation into disrepute are now the loudest voices calling for its “renewal.”

This contradiction raises a fundamental question: can those responsible for the ANC’s decline credibly lead its rebirth? For years, South Africans have watched the ANC’s steady descent from the moral high ground it once occupied. The rot did not appear overnight. It grew over decades, fuelled by greed, complacency, and a sense of entitlement to state resources. Scandals such as state capture, tender manipulation, and the looting of public enterprises have become the ANC’s modern legacy. The liberation movement that once united a nation has become fractured by internal power struggles and personal ambitions.

Now, as the party faces waning electoral support and growing public disillusionment, a new mantra has emerged from within: “renewal.” The term rolls off the tongues at conferences, branch meetings, and public rallies. Renewal, they say, is the key to restoring the ANC’s credibility and reconnecting with the people. But this noble idea rings hollow when championed by leaders who were complicit in—or at the very least silent about—the corruption and moral decline they now condemn. The irony is hard to miss. Some of the loudest advocates for renewal today were yesterday’s defenders of the indefensible. They rallied behind leaders implicated in wrongdoing, turned a blind eye to mismanagement, and protected their own political fiefdoms. To hear them now speak of ethics, integrity, and rebuilding the movement feels like watching an arsonist volunteer to rebuild the house they burned down — using the same matchbox still in their pocket. Real renewal requires honesty, humility, and sacrifice — qualities in short supply within the ANC’s upper ranks. It is not about reshuffling old faces or rebranding tired slogans. Renewal begins with accountability: a frank acknowledgement of the party’s failures, an admission of wrongdoing, and concrete action to correct them.

But accountability is precisely what the ANC has avoided. Too often, internal disciplinary processes are used as political tools, not mechanisms for justice. Cadres accused of corruption are “redeployed” rather than removed. Investigations are launched and quietly buried. This culture of impunity has hollowed out the ANC’s moral core. The result is a crisis of credibility. Ordinary South Africans no longer believe the ANC can police itself. Communities that once sang struggle songs with pride now speak of betrayal and disappointment. Younger voters, who grew up after 1994, see the party not as a liberation movement but as an obstacle to progress. The ANC’s repeated promises of renewal sound increasingly like an echo — loud, repetitive, but ultimately empty.If the ANC is serious about self-correction, it must begin by clearing out those who have tainted its name.

Renewal cannot be led by those who have benefited from corruption or turned a blind eye to it. It must come from a new generation of leaders who embody the principles of service, humility, and integrity — leaders who understand that power is not a privilege but a responsibility. That means creating space for young, ethical, and competent members to lead. It means re-establishing the supremacy of values over personalities, of principle over faction. There is still a path to redemption for the ANC, but it is narrow. The party must confront its own contradictions head-on. It must stop treating renewal as a slogan and start treating it as a painful but necessary process of cleansing. It must recognise that credibility cannot be restored through rhetoric; it must be earned through action. South Africans are not demanding perfection.

They are demanding honesty — a leadership that owns up to its mistakes and shows genuine commitment to change. The ANC’s struggle today is not against external enemies, but against itself: its complacency, its arrogance, and its moral drift. Until it confronts those within its ranks who have betrayed its founding values, talk of renewal will remain nothing more than political theatre.In the end, the ANC cannot be renewed by the same hands that broke it. True renewal requires courage — the courage to step aside, to make way for new voices, and to put the people above personal interest. Anything less is not renewal; it is recycling.

*Mayalo is an independent writer. The views expressed are not necessarily those of IOL or Independent Media.