ANC secretary-general Fikile Mbalula has returned to work after his dramatic collapse at the Constitutional Court, revealing what pushed him to his limit.
Mbalula confirmed his return to Luthuli House in Johannesburg on Sunday, 18 October, after President Cyril Ramaphosa ordered him to rest following Thursday’s health scare.
The ANC secretary-general declared himself fit to resume his duties, joking that he had served his sentence.
“The President of the African National Congress, who is after all the boss, ordered me to bed. That order expired at six o’clock this morning. I have served my sentence, and I am back at my desk,” Mbalula said.
MBALULA REVEALS WHAT LED TO HIS COLLAPSE
Mbalula blamed seven weeks of mounting pressure over the ANC’s legal battle to reinstate 181 councillor candidates ahead of the 4 November local government elections.
He said the possibility of voters in six municipalities receiving ballot papers without their preferred party had weighed heavily on him.
“Many of you saw what happened to me in that courtroom, I had carried something heavy for seven weeks,” he said.
“The thought that people in six municipalities might be handed a ballot paper that did not carry the party they had chosen. That thought sat on my chest every night.”
Mbalula said the Constitutional Court’s ruling in the ANC’s favour brought overwhelming relief.
“When the Court spoke, the weight came off all at once, and the body did what the body does.”
He acknowledged that the pressure had taken a physical toll.
“I am a human being. All of us have a limit, and there is no shame in finding yours.”
[WATCH] THE TASK AHEAD, DECISIVE VICTORY FOR THE ANC
— ANC SECRETARY GENERAL | Fikile Mbalula (@MbalulaFikile) October 18, 2026
Comrades, fellow South Africans, there are seventeen days left. The courtroom is behind us. The campaign is in front of us. I am back, I am well, and from today you will find me where I belong, which is on the ground, with our… pic.twitter.com/CpOodrbMnC
DOCTORS GIVE FIKILE MBALULA THE ALL-CLEAR
Mbalula assured South Africans that doctors had examined him following the incident.
“To my family, who had the fright of their lives, and to all of you: the doctors have examined me thoroughly and I am fit as a fiddle.”
He added: “I have rested. Now the ground is calling my name.”
As previously reported by The South African, Mbalula became visibly emotional and nearly collapsed while addressing journalists on Thursday, 15 October.
The incident followed the Constitutional Court’s decision to overturn an earlier ruling that upheld the Electoral Commission of South Africa’s (IEC) exclusion of 181 ANC candidates.
The ANC had failed to complete the final submission step on the IEC’s online nomination system before the deadline.
The court subsequently ordered the IEC to include the affected candidates on the ballot.
RAMAPHOSA HAD ORDERED MBALULA TO REST
Mbalula’s return comes just a day after Ramaphosa confirmed that he had instructed the ANC secretary-general to take time off.
Speaking during an election campaign visit to Athlone, Cape Town, on Saturday, Ramaphosa acknowledged the pressure Mbalula had faced.
“He was carrying a heavy burden,” Ramaphosa said.
On Sunday, Ramaphosa insisted that Mbalula would not return until he and the doctors were satisfied with his recovery.
Mbalula has now declared himself ready to resume his political duties as the ANC heads into the final stretch of campaigning ahead of the 4 November elections.