WATCH | Mantashe walks out of Cosatu congress over speaking order

ANC chairperson Gwede Mantashe staged a walkout at the Cosatu reconvened 15th National Congress after refusing to address the congress before the SACP.

ANC Chairperson Gwede Mantashe abandons Cosatu 15th National Congress without delivering message of support after refusing to speak before SACP.🎥 Boitumelo Kgobotlo https://t.co/QypgJEFkhN

— Sunday World News (@SundayWorldZA) October 12, 2026

Mantashe said the order in which alliance partners addressed the congress was not a matter of convenience but one of tradition and status, emphasising that the ANC remains the leader of the alliance and should speak last.

He said unless the partners had formally agreed to change the order, the ANC should be given the final opportunity to give their message of support.

“If there were no women, I would tell you the order of circumcision. You would never allow a young man to circumcise before you and the alliance is like that,” said Mantashe.

“I would appreciate that young workers took a decision out of convenience. They have no history of the alliance, they have no history of the federation itself and therefore they distort it in their congress,” he added.

Mantashe said he would not surrender what he regarded as the ANC’s rightful position for the convenience of the congress and its organisers.

The dispute drew criticism from the delegates, some of whom accused Mantashe of displaying a “big brother syndrome” towards the federation and its alliance partners.

His refusal to take the podium prompted loud singing in plenary, with delegates getting out of their chairs and chanting in response to the dispute.

This comes amid growing strain within the tripartite alliance, which brings together the ANC, SACP and Cosatu, amid the communist party’s decision to contest elections independently after expressed loss of confidence in the ANC.

Mantashe acknowledged that his refusal to participate could cost the ANC some support, but suggested that the party could gain support from those who believed in the tradition that the ANC should speak last.

The walkout added another moment of tension to a congress already facing difficulties, with the federation having to reconvene after its earlier gathering collapsed amid a dispute over credentials.

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