Zandile Gumede: ANC in KZN is drinking its own medicine, claims MK Party is a ‘messiah’
· Citizen
The deputy convenor of the uMkhonto weSizwe Party (MK party) in KwaZulu-Natal, Zandile Gumede, says the ANC in the province is to blame for its dwindling support.
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Gumede spoke to The Citizen in the township of Inanda, Durban, where she cast her vote in the 2026 local government elections. She had been a long-standing member of the ANC before joining the MK party this year.
“They are drinking their own medicine because all other people who were powerful within the party, those who made sure that the party grows, they made sure that they chop them down,” she said.
Gumede said she would not go back to the ANC, but declined to explain why.
“Never, not for now,” she said.
Gumede was a powerful figure in the ANC Women’s League (ANCYL) in KwaZulu-Natal. She is also a former mayor of the City of eThekwini.
She was ordered to step aside from her responsibilities after being charged with corruption.
The ANC has fallen on hard times in the KZN legislature, receiving only 17% of the provincial votes in the 2024 general elections.
A new journey for Gumede
Gumede said she is excited to be part of the MK party.
“I feel so grateful. Because of the ANC’s weakness, I am there with others to lift them [the MK party]. That is why I am here. I have been working so hard in eThekwini, me and the team, to make sure that the party wins the elections,” she said.
Gumede said she is proud to have been invited to serve in the MK party.
“I am grateful because I am going to be supporting the vision of our father, uNxamalala (Jacob Zuma). uNxamalala said, “Come, my child, let’s work for the community,” she said.
Gumede said she believes the MK party has made a mark in KZN and other provinces.
“What the MK Party stands for is to make sure that our communities are benefiting from their own government,” she said.
Gumede said she sees the MK Party as South Africa’s next governing party.
“We are going to be in local government now. We are going to be working so hard to make sure that our communities are happy for the benefit of our generations to come.”
A party of the tainted?
She said those who believe the leadership of the MK party is legally tainted are free to think so.
“If that’s how they see MK party, that’s up to them. On our side, we see the MK party as our messiah.”