An occasion to reflect on the hard truth about today's ANC

THE party that has shaped our history turns 100 years old today and by all accounts this is no ordinary event. This formidable liberation movement has been in the vanguard against an evil dogma that should never have been given space in South Africa.

It is heart-warming to have seen the likes of Nelson Mandela, Walter Sisulu, Andrew Mlangeni and many others live long enough to see the fruits of their heroic contribution to democracy.

But I wonder if this is the ANC that John Dube, Pixley ka Isaka Seme and Sol Plaatje conceived during those trying times.

As tempting as it is to be sentimental about the party's milestone, we should be completely candid about the ANC of today. Even the most die-hard supporters must concede that allegiance to the party is often driven by proximity to tenders and the cookie jar. Being a party member is not always about fighting a cause, but about getting hands on the levers of power so that kith and kin can line their already bulging pockets while the masses suffer. The fervency that drove the movement's forebears and pushed them to the gallows, does not run in the veins of all who fly the ANC flag.

I am sure that when, in 1911, Ka Isaka Seme called on Africans to unite and forget the differences of the past, he had no idea that the ANC of today would be in most need of his declaration "we are one people; these divisions, the jealousies, are the cause of all our woes today". The infighting and back-stabbing within the party leave no doubt that opposition parties are not the ANC' biggest enemy. Its biggest enemy is itself.

When, in 1944, the young men in the ANC formed the youth league with the aim of being militant in mobilising for much-needed change, I am sure it was a moment to behold. The radicalisation that was driven by the distinguished Anton Lembede, Mandela, Sisulu and Tambo shook the movement to its core. The restlessness of the young men was not to be ignored. They were militant. But they were also educated and strategic. How disingenuous for the current crop of so-called youth leaders to be using this justifiable militancy as an excuse for their vulgarity and crudeness. In justifying the vitriol that spews from their mouths, they do not consider - or perhaps lack the capacity to consider - how the economic, political and psychological degradation of Lembede's time made militancy a respectable alternative. Even in those trying times, these young men saw the value of education and realised that rebel-rousing alone was not going to cause a successful revolution.

Yes, I know that youth league leader Julius Malema is studying for a degree but I bet my last cent that he is doing so not because he values education butto prove to all that he is not the buffoon he has been branded. If they could speak from their graves, I am sure those eminent gentlemen who founded the youth league would shout "not in our name" every time they heard the current leaders shout, swear and bully anyone who opposes them. I am sure they are "dying" to teach these young men the stark difference between militancy and crassness.

If the ANC wants to be around for another 100 years, it must confront a few home truths. It must admit that within its ranks not all are interested in the national democratic revolution. That there are many whose sole purpose is to make hay while the sun shines. They are not thinking about the country, they are not concerned about the texture of the movement, but see membership and position as a tool to unlocking the bountiful resources. These are the enemies the party must focus on if it still wants to be around for another centenary celebration.