Mabuyane Takes the Wheel: ANC Taps Premier to Steer Eastern Cape Recovery Ahead of 2026 Polls

Premier Oscar Mabuyane has been appointed provincial convenor of the ANC’s new 39-member Eastern Cape Provincial Task Team, tasked with stabilising the party and leading it into the 2026 Local Government Elections.

By Mpho Dube, Editor-in-Chief

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EAST LONDON – The ANC has placed the Eastern Cape’s political and electoral future in the hands of Premier Oscar Mabuyane, appointing him provincial convenor of a newly constituted 39-member Provincial Task Team tasked with stabilising the province and leading it into the 2026 Local Government Elections.  

The move, announced Wednesday by ANC Secretary-General Fikile Mbalula, ends months of uncertainty after the Provincial Executive Committee’s term expired without an elective conference. For Mabuyane, the appointment cements his role as the province’s most senior ANC leader and signals confidence from Luthuli House in his ability to unify the party and deliver results.  

The task team’s brief is direct: restore order to ANC structures, resolve outstanding branch disputes, prepare the province for the 2026 polls, and guide the organisation toward a legitimate elective conference.

Mabuyane will lead alongside Deputy Convenor Mlungisi Mvoko, Coordinator Helen Sauls-August, Deputy Coordinator Nanziwe Rulashe-Nesi and Fundraiser Zolile Williams.  

The composition reflects a deliberate push for balance across the province’s eight regions, with 20 women and 19 men appointed to ensure broad representation.  

Mbalula described the intervention as “routine regularisation” in line with the ANC Constitution, stressing that governance in the province remains unaffected.  “The work of the state continues,” he said. “The Eastern Cape is not disbanded. Its term lapsed.”  

For Mabuyane, the convenorship builds on his record as premier and former provincial chair. Since taking office, he has prioritised infrastructure investment, youth employment programs and economic partnerships aimed at reducing the province’s dependence on public sector employment.  

His inclusion at the top of the task team gives the ANC a recognisable face and an incumbent premier who can link party processes directly to government delivery. That linkage matters in the Eastern Cape, where voters expect visible improvements in roads, water, schools and clinics.  

Analysts note that Mabuyane’s positioning also gives the ANC a stable anchor in the country’s second-largest province ahead of the ANC’s 2027 national elective conference. The Eastern Cape carries significant weight in national leadership contests, and a united campaign here strengthens any national ticket.  

The immediate test will be the 2026 local government elections. The ANC remains dominant in rural areas and townships, but urban metros like Nelson Mandela Bay have proven competitive. The task team’s job is to stabilise branches, ensure credible candidate processes and reconnect with voters who drifted away in 2024.  

By placing Mabuyane at the center, the ANC is betting on continuity and political management. His experience navigating coalition politics, managing provincial finances and engaging business and traditional leadership gives the party a pragmatic hand at a volatile time.  

The task team has 14 days to complete the formal handover from the dissolved PEC under a protocol issued by Luthuli House. All local and regional structures are now expected to operate under the PTT’s political and organisational authority.  

The appointment does not end internal contestation, but it does set the terms of engagement. Mabuyane now has the platform to shape branch processes, candidate lists and campaign messaging ahead of 2026.  

For the ANC in the Eastern Cape, the priority is clear: present a united front, protect its rural and township base, and claw back ground in urban municipalities.

With Mabuyane leading the charge, the party is positioning itself to defend its hold on the province and enter the next electoral cycle with a clear line of command.