The ANC wants every member to give it R50
The ANC is asking its ordinary members to make “regular pledges” of R50 or more, according to a report in the City Press.
The move is aimed at collecting money from around 1 million members, and is seen as a way to become less dependent on big companies for donations.
This is a notable shift, and has been attributed to business people who make large donations to the ANC benefiting from government contracts and potentially being involved in state capture.
According to the report, the idea is based on the Turkish governing party’s fundraising model.
“The ANC plans to ask its ordinary members to make pledges of R50 or R100 monthly to try to prevent business people from capturing the party again,” stated the report, quoting an ANC member.
If the ANC’s 989,736 members, a figure recorded in 2017, each pledge R50 per month, the party could raise over R49 million every 30 days.
An ANC member who spoke to the City Press said that political party funding from the IEC was not enough to keep it going, as the party has a head office, nine provincial offices, and 53 regional offices.
State capture
The new funding plan follows President Cyril Ramaphosa signing in a new law on public and private funding of political parties, and how it must be regulated.
The new law allows for donations of less than R100,000 without the need for a declaration, but a party cannot accept money which it suspects originates from the proceeds of crime.
State capture by businesses has plagued South Africa in recent years, with wealthy companies accused of essentially buying politicians to ensure they are awarded lucrative government contracts.
The Green Party of South Africa recently stated that there are sufficient grounds for high treason charges to be brought against key figures and groups that facilitated state capture in South Africa.
According to the party, state capture amounts to a “silent coup” of the South African government.
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