Veteran ANC leader and former Minister of International Relations, Naledi Pandor, has issued a stinging critique of the African National Congress (ANC), warning that South Africans now look upon the former liberation movement with “disdain, horror and shame.”
Speaking at the centenary lecture in honour of the late ANC Women’s League stalwart Gertrude Shope, Pandor said the ANC had lost its moral compass and public trust. Shope passed away in May 2025 and would have turned 100 this month.
“Ma’ Shope would have been dismayed at our faltering progress,” said Pandor.
While acknowledging progress in areas like education, innovation, and trade, Pandor lamented the erosion of values, corruption, and leadership failures that have come to define the ANC’s modern image.
“She knew of the corruption that has dragged down the revolutionary morality of our leaders… She was keenly aware of the decline of her beloved organisation,” Pandor told the audience.
She pointed to the ANC’s historic loss of its parliamentary majority in May 2024 and the tensions within the Government of National Unity (GNU) as proof that the party has drifted from its founding mission.
Calling for generational unity, Pandor encouraged older and younger women in the movement to unite in restoring the ANC’s vision. “Working together, we would be a strong force,” she said.
Pandor likened the process of renewal to scrubbing a burnt pot: “If you use the sponge scourer, that blackness won’t go away. But if you use the copper wire, you’ll get rid of it. We need that kind of renewal.”
She stressed the importance of branches as the foundation of a revived ANC. “Strong branches mean a strong ANC. And we must have active members serving their communities.”
Pandor closed her remarks with a warning and a hope: “Let’s not pretend. We’ve lost our glory. But it is possible to restore it—if we choose the right leaders, return to the people, and commit to service.”
