South African President Cyril Ramaphosa displayed serenity and authority on Friday at the opening of the congress of the ANC, the historic ruling party, on the eve of a crucial vote to appoint its next leader and probable future head of state.
A big favourite, he maintained a tight smile in the face of the jeers and chants of opponents in the room where 4,500 delegates from all over the country were gathered. Before delivering a river speech in all respects similar to those he regularly addresses to the nation, reviewing the challenges to be met and the success of his first term.
As if to register his action in continuity from the outset.
South Africans “expect us to have the courage and the honesty to recognize our shortcomings and correct them”, he said in an ANC-branded jacket, referring to “the triple challenge of poverty, unemployment and some inequalities”.
But “green shoots are starting to sprout,” he added optimistically. “I am convinced that better days are ahead of us.”
The “comrades” of the African National Congress (ANC) invested this conference center near Soweto for five days of debates in an atmosphere of great mass in green-yellow-black.
Despite delays in the schedule, the vote is still scheduled for Saturday morning, assured spokesman Amos Phago, estimating that it would take five hours to know the results.
The affable Cyril Ramaphosa, 70, sometimes mocked for a bonhomie that hides a shrewd negotiator, is well placed to retain the party presidency and win a second term, if the ANC wins the 2024 general election.
His only rival at this stage, far behind, is his former Minister of Health, Zweli Mkhize, 66, dismissed after a corruption scandal.
– No credible alternative –
The head of state approaches this vote only a few days after having escaped an impeachment procedure, which paradoxically closed ranks around him.
Mr Ramaphosa is accused of trying to cover up the 2020 theft of wads of dollars hidden in a sofa at his rural Phala Phala estate. He is not charged, the police investigation continues.
In the absence of a credible alternative within the ANC, the majority party in Parliament supported him, ruling out on Tuesday the possibility of a vote on the forced departure of the head of state. Some voices have been raised against the imposed “line”, but the watchword is clear: play the Ramaphosa card.
Thwarting an impeachment procedure “probably strengthened his candidacy for re-election”, eliminating any “uncertainty” about the choice to be made, political analyst Susan Booysen told AFP.
In decline at the polls for 10 years, the ANC went below 50% for the first time in local elections last year. The party, in power since the end of apartheid, is thus haunted by the fear of a defeat in the general elections of 2024.
Very popular despite the scandal, Cyril Ramaphosa seems to be the best asset of the party. His last public appearances turned into a joyous walkabout.
Tumi Mogotla, 37, who sells ANC-branded items outside Congress, hopes he will be nominated for a second term. Despite the “Phala Phala” scandal, he continues to believe that “Ramaphosa is the best person to eradicate corruption”.
During an ANC fundraiser on Thursday evening, Mr Ramaphosa listed the setbacks – the Covid pandemic, the riots in July 2021 which left 350 dead, inflation linked to the war in Ukraine, saying that “of the Similarly, the ANC has had its own challenges, some would say turbulence”.
“The ANC needs Ramaphosa. He will win,” said analyst Ralph Mathekga. “Even those who hate him need him to win,” he adds, referring to the internal divisions that are tearing the party apart.
And with an opposition that is struggling to structure itself, the way seems open to Mr. Ramaphosa to retain power.