‘We Felt the Shift’: Ramaphosa Admits Zuma’s MK Party Helped Strip ANC of Its Majority

When the ANC dipped below 50% for the first time in democratic history, many South Africans already sensed the winds changing. But hearing President Cyril Ramaphosa say it out loud, Jacob Zuma’s MK party cost the ANC its majority, gave the moment weight, honesty, and perhaps a rare glimpse of self-reflection in a party under pressure.

Speaking at the ANC’s National General Council (NGC), Ramaphosa didn’t sugar-coat it. The May 2024 elections were, in his own words, a “severe strategic setback”, dropping the ANC to 40% of the national vote a fall unimaginable a decade ago, when the ANC still felt politically untouchable.

But today’s South Africa is different. Hungrier. Angrier. More impatient.

A Political Reality Check And an Uncomfortable Name

Ramaphosa acknowledged what many analysts and taxi-rank debates have echoed for months:
the MK party formed by former president Jacob Zuma in December 2023 didn’t just enter the race, it disrupted it.

Especially in Gauteng and KwaZulu-Natal, the MK wave split loyalties, drew in disillusioned ANC supporters, and reshuffled the political map. MK even won KZN outright, a symbolic punch to the stomach for the party that once considered the province its stronghold, before a coalition between the IFP, ANC, DA and NFP pushed MK into opposition benches.

One South African on X summed up public sentiment bluntly:
“Zuma didn’t just leave, he took the furniture with him.”

Why Voters Walked Away

It wasn’t only MK’s presence. Ramaphosa admitted deeper wounds:

• Unemployment and economic frustration

• Service delivery failures

• Public anger over corruption

• Record-low voter turnout of 58%

For many who stood in long queues since ’94, faith has been wearing thin. Communities without water, load-shedding scars, and pothole politics have turned patience into protest, sometimes quietly, through abstaining; sometimes loudly, through the ballot.

Can the ANC Recover, or Is This the Beginning of the Decline?

Political analyst Prof Ntsikelelo Breakfast warned the ANC may never fully bounce back, while party veteran Mathews Phosa predicts support could one day slide to as low as 26%.

Others within the party still believe renewal is possible, but only if the ANC listens, apologises, and learns. A tall order for an organisation layered with factions, history, and internal strain.

The NGC is not an election battleground, Ramaphosa’s leadership remains safe for now, his final term ending in 2027. Instead, this council is a mirror: a mid-term audit of 30 years of democracy, a rethink of strategy, and a test of whether the ANC can adapt instead of merely remembering its glory.

The Cost of Living Crisis: The Elephant in Every Room

Beyond politics, everyday survival remains front row. Ramaphosa noted that 61% of the national budget (post-debt) goes to social support, grants, education, housing, health, a lifeline for millions.

But even with grants increasing and more food items VAT-free, the rising cost of living continues to choke working-class households. Poverty is not a statistic in South Africa, it’s a neighbour, a family member, a reality.

If renewal is the slogan, delivery will have to be the proof.

A New Era of Politics, Ready or Not

The 2024 election marked more than a percentage drop. It was the most contested election in 30 years, with new parties, independents, and shifting alliances. South Africans are exploring alternatives, demanding accountability, and resisting automatic loyalty.

Whether ANC’s decline is temporary or historical depends on what happens after admissions like this one. Words can acknowledge loss, but action will determine legacy.

For now, the country watches, some hopeful, some wary, others simply tired, as one era fades and another unfolds.

Zuma may have sparked the political tremor, but the aftershocks are the ANC’s to manage.

{Source: The Citizen}

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