The ANC's Northern Cape leader, however, shared photos of packed stands.
Mbalula had further claimed on Saturday that there were 25,000 people in attendance. The Citizen’s photographer, Nigel Sibanda, attended the event and said the stadium attendance was a bit sparse in places and he questioned the accuracy of the 25,000 claim.
While many analysts credited him with keeping the ANC in charge after a tumultuous and scandalous decade under Jacob Zuma, he nevertheless suffered a drop from 62% for the party five years earlier.
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