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Newly elected Alfred Nzo Regional Chairperson Tsileng Sobuthongo closed the 5th Regional Conference of the ANC with a call for unity, renewal and a stronger focus on local economic development.
Speaking before ANC NEC and PEC leaders, Alliance partners, League representatives and branch delegates, Sobuthongo said the new Regional Executive Committee (REC) accepts the responsibility to rebuild the organisation in the Eastern Cape’s poorest region.
He cited the conference theme, “The Year of Renewal to Make the ANC a More Effective Instrument of the People to Achieve the Vision of the Freedom Charter”, as a reminder that the ANC must refocus on the needs of communities.
“We commit to you, the membership of the ANC and the entire population of Alfred Nzo, that we will strive to unite this region,” Sobuthongo said. “We must agree that all factions return to the centre where the ANC is. No disciplined force shall exercise triumphalism over other comrades.”
Sobuthongo warned against internal divisions, saying that ANC conferences post-1994 have often left the party weakened ahead of elections. He backed a call from the Chris Hani Regional Conference for an early provincial conference to allow more time for preparation before the upcoming local government elections.
The new REC, he added, would strengthen research, monitoring and evaluation, and coordinate government work more effectively to address community frustrations that have led to protests and voting station closures.
Sobuthongo also highlighted the urgent need to reduce poverty and inequality in Alfred Nzo.
“We depart from this conference acknowledging that we will be asking difficult and yet practical questions of how to move the region forward and away from poverty,” he said. “If we fail in this mission, the ANC’s claim to be a leader of society will lose relevance.”
The regional chairperson thanked the ANC’s NEC and PEC delegations for ensuring a dignified conference, and urged delegates to hold the REC accountable for unity and service delivery.
“Amandla!” Sobuthongo concluded, calling on delegates to travel home safely.
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