Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za
3-minute read | 21 October 2025 | 12:45 CAT

📸Mounting scandals and legal scrutiny place the ANC under intense pressure as questions of financial and moral integrity deepen. (Image: Daily Maverick)

The ANC’s financial woes continue to deepen as the ruling party faces an insolvency application that could jeopardize over R1 billion in public funds, exposing a broader crisis of both financial and moral credibility.

Reports reveal that at least three of the ANC’s bank accounts have been attached, halting payments to settle an R85 million debt. The party’s cash crunch, analysts warn, comes at a critical time ahead of next year’s local government elections – a test that could determine its survival.

Political analyst Zakhele Ndlovu did not mince her words. “Oh yes, the ANC is financially bankrupt,” she told Radio Islam International. “You would recall that last year and the year before, it could not even pay its employees, which for me was really very bad because we’re talking about the ruling party.”

According to Ndlovu, the ANC’s inability to meet basic salary obligations sends a “disturbing message” about the state of governance within the party that once prided itself on liberation and leadership.

Professor Dirk Kotze echoed the concern, explaining that the financial instability stems from structural issues within the party. “The ANC is overstaffed. At one point, there were more than 300 people employed at Luthuli House,” he told Radio Islam International. “Some were senior figures like former ministers who expected substantial salaries. On top of that, the ANC ran very expensive election campaigns, including the 2019 one, which it still hasn’t fully paid for.”

Kotze added that dwindling donor confidence and falling electoral support have compounded the crisis. “When you are the dominant party with two-thirds support, people want to fund you. But once that support declines, donors hesitate,” he explained.

Beyond finances, the Madlanga Commission of Inquiry is dealing another blow to the party’s credibility. Ndlovu warned that the inquiry could implicate several senior leaders, including President Cyril Ramaphosa. “If the president gets implicated, together with figures like Bheki Cele and Sihle Zikhalala, voters will begin to see that the ANC is not a party that can be trusted,” she said.

Yet Kotze argued that corruption scandals alone may not drastically shift voter behaviour. “The real pressure is not from commissions,” he noted, “but from poor service delivery like water, electricity, infrastructure. That’s where citizens feel the ANC has failed them.”

While the ANC maintains its historical support base, analysts agree that mounting scandals, service failures, and a weakening financial backbone signal a party in both fiscal and moral decline, one whose grip on power may soon face its toughest test yet.

Listen to the full interview on Sabahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat.