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Mmusi Maimane to Legacy Foundations: ‘Come Back to the Table’
In the heart of Rosebank, Johannesburg, Dr Mmusi Maimane stood before the media and made a simple but powerful plea: Come back to the table.
As South Africa’s National Dialogue process threatens to fall apart amid walkouts and growing mistrust, the Build One South Africa (BOSA) leader is calling on legacy organisations like the Thabo Mbeki Foundation and Steve Biko Foundation to reconsider their withdrawal and help salvage what he describes as a once-in-a-generation opportunity.
A National Dialogue in Crisis
Last weekend’s National Convention, hosted at UNISA in Pretoria, was supposed to be a turning point. Instead, it sparked outrage. Key figures and institutions, including former President Thabo Mbeki, the Desmond and Leah Tutu Foundation, and major civil society organisations, walked away, citing a lack of transparency and growing government control.
Concerns have centred around a reportedly bloated R700 million budget and fears that the dialogue is being shaped into a public relations tool for the ruling party rather than a truly inclusive national conversation.
President Cyril Ramaphosa has pushed back on the criticism, insisting the process will be cost-effective and community-led. “We need to be inside the tent, not outside it,” he said, encouraging sceptics to return and participate.
But trust is clearly in short supply.
Who’s Really on Trial?
Maimane did not hold back when addressing the fractured state of the Government of National Unity and the dialogue itself.
“The question is, who is on trial?” he asked. “It cannot be that we only point fingers at government when corruption is rewarded, when young girls fall pregnant at alarming rates, and when we turn a blind eye to moral collapse.”
He painted a picture of a nation in need of more than political reform. According to Maimane, South Africa must also confront its collective accountability crisis, from who we vote for to what we tolerate in our communities.
A Call for Non-Political Engagement
One of Maimane’s strongest appeals was to make the dialogue truly inclusive and non-partisan. While several organisations and opposition parties have walked away, he insists this moment demands more participation, not less.
“We may not get another chance like this,” he said. “We must do everything possible to make this dialogue work, and it will only work if the right people are in the room.”
The call comes amid a backdrop of deepening rifts within the GNU itself. Parties like the Democratic Alliance and Freedom Front Plus have distanced themselves from the process, accusing the ANC of hijacking it to rebuild its image ahead of the 2026 elections. AfriForum, Solidarity, and the MK Party have gone further, calling it a costly sideshow designed to bypass democratic institutions.
Can the Dialogue Be Saved?
The idea of a truly inclusive national conversation is something many South Africans want, but most are unsure how or where it can realistically happen. The optics of walkouts, secrecy, and alleged mismanagement have fuelled public cynicism.
Maimane’s message lands at a moment when that cynicism is peaking. His emphasis on moral leadership, accountability beyond party lines, and the importance of civil society may be what the process needs most.
The question is whether enough voices will return to the table to turn the National Dialogue into what it was originally meant to be: a reset, not a rerun.
Also read: Mmusi Maimane Steps Into the GNU Storm: What His Briefing Could Mean for South Africa
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Source: IOL
Featured Image: The South African
