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Johannesburg - This weekend's National General Council (NGC) will not see the ANC change any of its policies, but will focus on doing some introspection and adjustments to its existing positions, the party said on Thursday.
The NGC is the ruling party's mid-term review, which comes a little more than two years after its Mangaung elective conference.
"The NGC... reviews implementation of resolutions and can adjust programmes to deal with challenges and problems, and identify areas where new policy is needed," ANC secretary general Gwede Mantashe told reporters on Thursday ahead of the conference.
A total of 4 094 delegates are expected to attend this year's NGC to be held in Midrand, Johannesburg. The bulk - 90% - came from ANC branches.
Mantashe said delegates from provinces were decided on a proportional allocation system. The more members a province had, the bigger its delegation.
Of the 4 094 delegates, 2 500 came from ANC-controlled provinces, with the biggest number 513, coming from KwaZulu-Natal.
This was followed by the Eastern Cape with 403 delegates, Mpumalanga (315), Gauteng (285), Limpopo (275), North West (257), Free State (165), Western Cape (162) and Northern Cape (162).
Other delegates included the ANC's leagues, alliance partners, the national executive committee, provincial executive committees and regional executive committees as well as Umkhonto weSizwe Military Veterans Association.
The ANC's integrity committee, which is made up of some of the party's veterans, would also attend.
Other guests were made up of former liberation movements from countries such as Zimbabwe, Angola, Mozambique, Namibia and Tanzania and representatives of the Brics embassies.
Nine discussion documents will be discussed at the NGC.
They are balance of forces, economic transformation, education and health, legislature and governance, social transformation, the battle of ideas, media transformation and diversity, and accelerating the digital future, peace and stability, international relations and rural development and land reform.
Introspection
The ANC, as part of its discussions on key issues such as the economy, will also do introspection.
The NGC comes less than a year until next year's local government elections.
In its balance of forces paper the ANC has admitted that it needed to mend its ways following a drop in support, especially in the country's metros.
But as much as the NGC is said to focus on policy, it has also been characterised as a time for lobby groups within the party to test the waters when it comes to support ahead of the next elective congress.
Looking at the proportional number of delegates from each province President Jacob Zuma's support numbers more than 50% of the delegates attending.
In the run up to 2017, where the party will elect a successor to Zuma, there has been a focus on an alleged lobby group which has been dubbed the "premier league".
The "premier league" is said to include Mpumalanga Premier David Mabuza, North West Premier Supra Mahumapelo and Free State Premier Ace Magashule.
The three also chair the ANC in their respective provinces.
It is alleged that their plan is to entrench themselves as leaders or kingmakers for 2017.
It is also believed that the group wants Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma to succeed her ex-husband as leader of the ANC.
The ANC's NEC has called on party members to not discuss succession until the appropriate time, but this has not seemed to stop allegations of strong lobbying on the sidelines.
