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The outcome of the recent polls in our country has proved the adage that politics is essentially the art of the possible.
Countless people had thought that in the aftermath of the Jacob Zuma administration which was characterised by a fierce patronage network that gradually eroded the ANC’s support from 2009, the organisation would garner less than 50% of the national vote in this year’s elections, something that would pave the way to a coalition government.
They also thought that would be the beginning of the end of this glorious movement as proved by former liberation movements which came to power and then collapsed after a period of 20 years at the helm.
That was not to be, for the logic of mathematics rarely applies in politics.
The fact of the matter is that the pendulum of the recent election was swung by the outcome of the ANC’s Nasrec conference in December 2017which catapulted Cyril Ramaphosa to president.
It was just after his election that the Guptas, the demons of state capture that had run this country down, bolted out of the country.
And lest we forget, the chief architect of the move that made Ramaphosa emerge in that conference was the deputy president of the organisation, David Mabuza, with his unity narrative.
The leadership went on to do the right thing. They wasted no time in removing the ever-blundering Zuma from his position as president, replacing him with Ramaphosa.
Ramaphosa did not waste any time but started implementing the promises that he made during his election campaign.
Chief among those are stopping state capture in its tracks, fast-tracking service delivery, fighting corruption, subjectingthose who are implicated in corrupt activities to the rule of law, stopping the rot at parastatals and resuscitating the economy.
The voters bought into his message.
By so doing, he won back many members and supporters of the ANC who had become disillusioned during the Zuma era and had decided to stay away, something that was clearly visible in Gauteng and the Eastern Cape in the 2016 local government elections.
Now he has also won the support of a lot of white people.
This is proof that the passage of time plus special individuals can alter our perspectives.
It has come as no surprise that people contend Ramaphosa is more popular than the organisation he leads. And they are right because he is the right man for this job. This is because of his outstanding leadership skills, patriotism, visionary wisdom, high level of education, ethical character and hatred of corruption, as well as great patience.
If he keeps his promises and continues to lift South Africa up as he is doing, then the ANC will once again rise like a phoenix to political stardom in this country and reclaim the metros they lost in 2016.
The other possibility is that they will go on to win the 2024 national elections and once again nullify the possibility of a coalition government. It is evident that Ramaphosa is carrying the ANC and your country on his shoulders.
He deserves everyone’s support.
