Cape Town — African National Congress (ANC) leader, Cyril Ramaphosa, says being a dictator is not his leadership style, and those looking for that in him will be disappointed.
Ramaphosa was speaking at an ANC town hall meeting at the Gordon Institute of Business Science in Illovo and had a conversation with young professionals as part of his campaign trail. He reflected on his time in charge of the country and said he has dealt with insults over his time in charge, TimesLIVE reported.
“I remember standing in parliament talking about various forms of social compacting and saying, for instance, on climate change, I want to set up a body of a diverse number of people to help us. I was laughed out of court, with people saying I should be taking decisions, ‘he’s a weak leader, he hasn’t got the strength’,” he said.
Ramaphosa said he has a collaborative leadership style and won’t be persuaded or moved by any rival views.
“When they asked why I don’t take decisions on my own, I said no. That’s not my style of leadership. People also have views and suggestions to put forward and that is what I’ve always sought to embrace — and for that I am guilty as charged.” he said.
ANC President cde Cyril Ramaphosa in a Townhall Meeting with Young Professionals #VoteANC https://t.co/MmhpEDOQxq
— Cyril Ramaphosa 🇿🇦 (@CyrilRamaphosa) May 23, 2024
Ramaphosa said these accusations of his ability are not unique to him, and it is part of the historical fibre of the country. He said South Africans are used to social compacting and working together, as demonstrated with defeating Apartheid.
Ramaphosa spoke about the formation of the Freedom Charter and how it was not only the ANC, but a consolidation of organisations that drafted the most iconic document produced in the history of our country, saying the mere drafting of the constitution itself was another form of social compact.”
Even in recent times, Ramaphosa said, the country has seen social compacting among citizens in defence of the country and the public good.
Called “the president of commissions”, Ramaphosa maintained this is why his administration has approached problem solving in this manner.
“We must accept that the problems that were inherent at the time really were a challenge to the concept of social compacting. In the sixth administration, when we started, we realised that we want to bring back the spirit of social compacting.” he said.
Ramaphsoa said he put together diverse groups of people to deal with corruption and to help handle the Covid-19 pandemic, bringing togetehr minds to come up with a better solution.
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Compiled by Matthew Petersen
