Can a Shilowa be greater than the ANC?

I was amazed to learn that Mbhazima Shilowa has resigned his position as premier of Gauteng province.

He has done so without prior consultation with the organisation that had put him there, in the first place. In fact, he has decided to quit the plum job because he does not like how former President Thabo Mbeki was “recalled” or demoted.

Shilowa has told the world that he does not understand or agree with how the mother body has handled the transfer of leadership from former President Mbeki.

Of course, the ANC is not happy with how one of its senior sons and disciplined cadres has, suddenly, stepped out of line. They have said so, themselves.

Nobody should be surprised if Shilowa is expelled or suspended. It is no rocket science that he is not going to be allowed to get away with what the provincial structures already call “unbecoming behaviour.” So, we shall wait for the organisation itself to decide what steps to take, if any.

But there is no doubt that the Shilowa stance to swim against the collective leadership tide raises very interesting and complex philosophical issues. I have no personal interest in how he has allegedly dragged the reputation of his organisation in the mud or who he wants to stand up for.

As the oldest political liberation movement in the continent, the ANC will know how to deal with him. History informs us that it is not the first time that it has had to deal with what can it has called ‘‘unbecoming behavior.”

Shilowa certainly understands the notions of democratic centralism and collective leadership. As a result, he fully understands that he is, always, expected to ‘toe the line.’

Kumele ahlale phansi abambe umthetho -– what should have happened was for him to ‘sit down and obey the law’ as set out by his organisation. Instead, he is defiant and says he cannot be told what to do by the ANC.

This is not a very complex issue.

In fact, when you are a member of any organisation, you must do as you are told. This conforming behaviour you not only learn at pre-school but is what happens in at educational institutions, families, businesses, churches and, of course, political parties like the ANC or Azapo.

If you a member, you become what one can call the ‘property’ of The Party. You cease to be yourself. This is not negotiable.

It may sound like violation of one’s human rights but whatever the organisation, especially its executive council says, is the law. So, it is understandable why the ANC cannot be happy with Shilowa’s “unbecoming behavior.”

What is clear is that Shilowa should have simply followed the dictates of his leadership or use internal processes to raise the issue of personal concern. But, of course, he has decided to do his own thing and refused to “be influenced” so that he listens only to his own conscience. But there is no such thing as a conscience outside society or organisational structures. Thus when the acid rain falls, some people may find it difficult to sympathise with Shilowa.

There are even suspicions that he is trying to make himself a hero of freedom of thought and expression. But that is not entirely possible within structures of any organisation.

In fact, there is no alternative route when you are a member of an organisation. You simply kow-tow to the collective leadership and what has been decided. Thus the personal choice of taking an individual and personal stand is simply self-delusion. Shilowa is fully aware that he will, most likely, face the wrath of the organisation.

If you think freedom of choice is more important than the dictates of the group, you may think Shilowa is definitely right to believe in his right as an individual. But real politics and life do not entertain too much ‘freedom’ for the individual.

There will be people who call for his expulsion or suspension from the organisation for the simple reason that he has defied its highest authority. If he is allowed to do as he likes and shows what could be considered disrespect for the decisions taken by the ANC executive, he could unleash a new culture of poor leadership control and chaos where everybody does as he likes in the organisation.

There is no individual who is greater than the organisation to which he belongs. Just like any other rank and file member, Shilowa is not greater than the ANC.

In fact, there can be no powerful Shilowa and a powerful ANC in the same kraal. The two cannot co-exist.

There are others who say after a decade of the good life given by the ANC, Shilowa now wants out of politics. This is now the end of the road for him. He may have reached a point where he wants out to just do his own thing as a businessman. But it would be difficult for anyone to find peace, joy and happiness outside his own organisation. The politics of any mother body just do not allow that. Organisational culture prevents it.

The root cause of problems in organizations is when individual members do as they please.

This is what plunges them into crises. But a few individuals who display “unbecoming behavior” do not, necessarily, constitute crises.