At no other time in the recent history of the ANC does the term "in good standing" hold more weight than it does now, as the governing party’s structures prepare to hold what may be its most crucial national conference to date.
As branches in its regions prepare themselves for an audit process, the authenticity of their books and members is to come under unprecedented scrutiny.
The stakes are high, as political fortunes will be made and destroyed in December.
The ANC is already investigating claims that the party is riddled with "ghost members", which threaten to undermine its regions’ preparations for the national conference. Approval of the delegates they send to the conference hinges on the validity of their books.
The race to succeed President Jacob Zuma has so far been a contest between Deputy President Cyril Ramaphosa and Dr Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma.
Mathews Phosa has indicated an appetite to run, an Eastern Cape region has put forward Dr Zweli Mkhize’s name while Lindiwe Sisulu has thrown her hat in the ring.
Despite this, political pundits maintain that the contest remains one between Dlamini-Zuma and Ramaphosa.
Dlamini-Zuma has support in the Free State and North West, and the party’s youth and the women’s leagues.
Mpumalanga, previously part of the premier league faction that is pro-Zuma, is now considered to be a swing province.
ANC structures in the Northern Cape, Gauteng and the Eastern Cape have thrown their weight behind Ramaphosa, while alliance partners Cosatu and the SACP have pronounced him as their preferred successor to Zuma.
The lead-up to the December conference has been characterised by rising calls for Zuma to resign and will take place as allegations of state capture mount, with the president at the heart of them.
But membership fraud has emerged as another key concern in the run-up to the conference. Similar concerns, over whole ghost branches, were raised in 2012, when the ANC held its congress in Mangaung, Free State.
Provincial leaders gave Business Day mixed accounts of their branches’ state of readiness for December.
ANC Gauteng spokesman Nkenke Kekana said secretary-general Gwede Mantashe would set the date for the audit of the province’s branches.
"The audit is done to establish whether branches have paid-up members, whether branches have elected executive committees in good standing … and whether branch general meetings convened to … nominate conference delegates were attended by [at least] 51% members in good standing ...
"This is to ensure that in all branches in good standing, at least 51% of members participate in conference discussions and the nomination of candidates for leadership to higher structures," said Kekana.
"KwaZulu-Natal has a potential 870 branches ... so that’s the baseline for the audit," said ANC spokesman in the province Mdumiseni Ntuli, adding "the audit is done by [a] team from Luthuli House".
Eastern Cape ANC secretary Oscar Mabuyane said: "The audit will be concluded by the end of July."
ANC Free State spokesman Thabo Meeko said: "We need to audit 319 branches.... We are still to have a briefing on how many have been done because that is a national function."
In Limpopo, ANC secretary Knox Seabi said 566 branches were up for audit, while in the Northern Cape 208 branches would be audited, said chairman Zamani Saul.
ANC Western Cape secretary Faiez Jacobs said it had 372 branches to audit.
Mpumalanga and North West had not provided updates on the state of their audits by the time of going to print.
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