Rise Mzansi’s modest showing in the past election was the start of a process, and its vision and progress will make a mark in subsequent elections. This is the word from Mabine Seabe, Rise Mzansi’s Communications Director.
Writing in the Daily Maverick, he described the party’s resource-constrained and organisationally-limited campaign as focusing largely on listening to communities about their problems and priorities.
Despite some excitement from commentators, Rise Mzansi performed differently, securing two seats in Parliament and one in the Gauteng Provincial Legislature.
Seabe wrote: ‘This was never about a single election, it was about laying down a foundation on which to build for 2026, 2029 and beyond. So those who believe that we will fizzle out will be sorely disappointed. We will also democratise the organisation by convening an elective conference before the next election.’
He added that despite resource constraints, Rise Mzansi had been able to put up election materials across the country ‘not through numbers, but because we had the professional experience of how to establish structures and create an image of being bigger than we are.’
Digital work was another important part of the campaign. Managing multiple accounts across several platforms was ‘giving the impression that we had a large team.’
He noted that journalists who reported or commented sympathetically on Rise Mzansi were often berated by their colleagues as being in the party’s pocket.
Seabe disputed this: ‘As the head of the media and communication team, along with the campaign management, we made strategic and tactical decisions that made our work newsworthy. The team are professionals: we work long hours, we answer our phones, we give meaningful responses to media queries, and we make our political principals — who show up on time — available for interviews. We also treat journalists with respect, even when they write stories that we disagree with.
‘Working with capable professionals matters, especially when you are building something new. I tip my hat to the people in the back room — who are mostly young and women — whose names will not be printed in newspapers and whose faces will not appear in photos and on TV.’
He said that providing the latitude for experts to do their work and use their expertise was the key to its campaign and a template to further success.
[Photo: Screenshot of Mabine Seabe from Rise Mzansi video]