{"id":99186,"date":"2025-07-18T11:33:48","date_gmt":"2025-07-18T09:33:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/?p=99186"},"modified":"2025-07-18T11:49:31","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T09:49:31","slug":"asri-report-kzn-power-play-senzo-mchunu-ramaphosa-and-the-ancs-precarious-balancing-act","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/asri-report-kzn-power-play-senzo-mchunu-ramaphosa-and-the-ancs-precarious-balancing-act\/","title":{"rendered":"ASRI Report | KZN Power Play: Senzo Mchunu, Ramaphosa, and the ANC’s Precarious Balancing Act"},"content":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

3-minute read
\n18 July 2025 | 11:45 CAT<\/p>\n

\"\"

\ud83d\udcf8 Power games in KZN: Can Ramaphosa survive without Mchunu?<\/p><\/div>\n

President Cyril Ramaphosa\u2019s decision to place Minister of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu<\/em>, on a leave of absence rather than dismissing him outright has raised questions about internal ANC dynamics, especially in the volatile political terrain of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN).<\/p>\n

In conversation with Dr Imraan Baccus on this week\u2019s ASRI Report<\/em>,<\/a> the implications of the move were unpacked with critical focus on how this reflects broader ANC instability and potential strategic missteps.<\/p>\n

\u201cRamaphosa is in a serious predicament,<\/strong>\u201d Dr Baccus explains. \u201cSenzo Mchunu isn\u2019t just any minister; he backed Ramaphosa in 2017 and commands considerable influence in KZN, particularly in areas where he kept the IFP at bay.\u201d Mchunu\u2019s political clout in the region may be one of the few strongholds Ramaphosa can still rely on in a province widely seen as a Zuma-aligned<\/em> stronghold.<\/p>\n

The leave of absence, rather than outright dismissal, signals Ramaphosa\u2019s cautious strategy. Dr Baccus points out that Mchunu, as a former police minister, \u201c<\/strong>could have pursued Phala Phala allegations\u201d against Ramaphosa, a potential threat the president may still be wary of. \u201cThere\u2019s acknowledgment that both of them have their vulnerabilities,\u201d Dr Baccus adds.<\/p>\n

Removing Mchunu entirely, particularly ahead of elections, could \u201cerode the ANC\u2019s dominance significantly in KZN,\u201d a province where loyalty and political patronage are in constant flux. As the ANC continues to lose support both nationally and provincially, Mchunu\u2019s role becomes more critical.<\/p>\n

Asked about Ramaphosa\u2019s ability to act boldly, Dr Baccus was cautious: \u201cThis is Ramaphosa\u2019s style. He walks the middle path, avoids ruffling feathers. He\u2019s no Mbeki, who acted even when it was unpopular.\u201d<\/p>\n

The rise of the MK party, backed by former president Jacob Zuma<\/em>, poses another challenge. While their messaging has lacked policy substance, \u201cZuma\u2019s presence still holds gravitas,\u201d says Dr Baccus. However, disillusionment is growing even among MK supporters, who \u201cdon\u2019t see a tangible impact on their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

As the ANC bleeds support, particularly at the local level where service delivery failures dominate public discourse, Dr Baccus warns: \u201cOnce liberation movements get pushed to the periphery, history teaches us they never recover.\u201d<\/p>\n

With upcoming local elections on the horizon, the ANC may face its greatest test yet, not just from the opposition, but from within its own fractured identity.<\/p>\n

Listen<\/strong> to the ASRI Report<\/a> on Sabahul Muslim with Moulana Sulaimaan Ravat and Dr Imraan Baccus.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Neelam Rahim | neelam@radioislam.co.za 3-minute read 18 July 2025 | 11:45 CAT President Cyril Ramaphosa\u2019s decision to place Minister of Water and Sanitation, Senzo Mchunu, on a leave of absence rather than dismissing him outright has raised questions about internal ANC dynamics, especially in the volatile political terrain of KwaZulu-Natal (KZN). In conversation with Dr […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":29,"featured_media":99187,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[28,5451,4995],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-99186","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-latest-news","category-political","category-south-africa"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/ASRI-Report-2.jpeg?fit=1600%2C1600&ssl=1","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[],"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/pc0QIf-pNM","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-04-24 13:21:40","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99186","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/29"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=99186"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/99186\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/99187"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=99186"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=99186"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/radioislam.org.za\/a\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=99186"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}