THE MARATHON PACT: RAMATHUBA AND MPE RUN LIMPOPO ANC INTO A NEW DISCIPLINE
- Mpho Dube
- May 2
- 3 min read
‘Better to die for an idea that will live, than live for an idea that will die’ — Limpopo’s top two turn unity into mileage ahead of November
By Mpho Dube, Editor-in-Chief
The Azanian | Truth. Fearless. Unfiltered.
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ANC Limpopo Provincial Chairperson and Premier Dr Phophi Ramathuba and ANC Deputy Provincial Chairperson and Polokwane Executive Mayor John Makoro Mpe emerged from the 11th Provincial Elective Conference on a unity slate, elected uncontested. Today, they are putting that unity on the road — kilometre by kilometre.
“Better to die for an idea that will live”
That line has become the code between them. Not a slogan for posters, but a rule for the road: It is better to die for an idea that will live, than to live for an idea that will die.
Unity, they argue, is an idea that must live. Factionalism is one that must be buried.
Their pact first hit the tar in March at the Makoro Foundation Marathon, days after their election. It expanded this week at the 2026 Polokwane City Marathon at the Old Peter Mokaba Stadium.
“We will continue to improve this marathon,” Mpe said. “It used to be short. Now we’ve added more — the 50km and 42.2km Comrades Marathon qualifiers, alongside the 21.1km, 10km, and 5km fun runs.”
The point is not just sport. “It’s part of creating a healthy lifestyle and inspiring more people. We are making this marathon big, promoting healthy living, and building community spirit. Polokwane must be a city that moves.”
Ramathuba and Mpe ran with thousands of athletes and community members. The symbolism was unmistakable: in politics, as in a marathon, there are no shortcuts. You train, you endure, you finish together.
“Healthy lifestyle is potent and imperative,” Ramathuba told runners. “It ejects all the stresses. As runners, they no longer care how much you insult them on Facebook and other social media platforms because they are firm.”
Their unity has been tested off the track. On Sunday, Ramathuba stood with Mpe at his father’s funeral. On Friday, 1 May 2026, they stood shoulder to shoulder at the COSATU National May Day Rally in Polokwane.
“Today you can confuse them as brother and younger sister, or husband and wife, or best friends,” an ANC veteran said. “Once political nemeses, now they are united. And after every storm, greater unity will emerge.”
That discipline is cascading down. Former factional “sweepers” are now “perplexed and forced to work together in unity to protect the ANC” ahead of the 4 November local elections.
There is another code they live by, forged in the province’s own history: It would be disingenuous for one person to hold the whole country to ransom because of a selfish agenda.
Limpopo learned that lesson the hard way. The Ramathuba-Mpe partnership is the answer. No single ambition is bigger than the movement. No quarrel is bigger than the people.
Nationally, the ANC fell to 40% in 2024 and entered a Government of National Unity. Limpopo held at 74% — the only province where the ANC still governs with an outright majority.
If the ANC cannot solve quarrels in its own house, preaching unity is worthless. Limpopo is choosing to practice what it preaches — from the graveside to the finish line.
Both carry scars from Limpopo’s political marathons. Both have been tested. But now they complement each other — in sorrow and happiness, in governance and in public presence.
“A healthy city is a working city,” Mpe said. “And a united leadership is a delivering leadership.”
The road to November will be decided by discipline. Ramathuba and Mpe have found their stride. The ANC in Limpopo is running again. The question is whether the rest of the party can keep up.
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