A group of ANC veterans and the governing party's leadership met outside Pretoria on Monday — and everyone is smiling through clenched teeth.
"Yes, there were individuals calling for President Jacob Zuma's resignation, but the veterans clarified that they were not calling for it as a group, which changes things," Gwede Mantashe, the ANC's secretary-general, told HuffPost SA on Tuesday.
Poet Mongane Wally Serote, who is one of the leaders of the veterans group, described discussions as "frank and honest, with difficult issues discussed".
Yes, there were individuals calling for President Jacob Zuma's resignation, but the veterans clarified that they were not calling for it as a group, which changes things.Gwede Mantashe
The meeting was attended by luminaries such as Frank Chikane, cleric and former director-general in the presidency, former leader of the ANC Women's League Gertrude Shope, erstwhile Minister in the Presidency Essop Pahad, ex-MK operative and senior civil servant Mavuso Msimang, as well as Dennis Goldberg, a Rivonia trialist.
According to Serote, the veterans want to see urgent progress on a range of issues they've flagged with the ANC leadership. The party invited the group to a follow-up meeting on Friday, when its National Executive Committee (NEC) meets for a scheduled three-day dialogue.
"Everyone involved in the process is looking to find a common point of departure, with the unity of the party as the paramount goal. Everybody, including the leadership and the veterans, needs to do introspection about why we are in the situation we're in. We must go back to serving the people," Serote said.
He added the party needs to redefine its relationship with South Africans.
Mantashe said no issue was left unattended and all the gripes veterans have with the leadership was aired. "The issues were not resolved, hence the follow-up meeting we have scheduled for Friday. The question of the consultative conference is still on the table and we might have more details on that afterwards."
Kebby Maphatsoe, chairperson of the MK Military Veterans Association (MKMVA), did not want to comment on the informal grouping of veterans' engagement with the party leadership. Maphatsoe was roundly criticised recently after he spoke out against Msimang and Sipho Pityana, who have been vocal about Zuma's leadership under the organisation, Save South Africa.